


The Sting

by planningconquest



Category: Star Wars, Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Death, F/F, F/M, M/M, Mentions of Slavery, Other, Scams, Star Wars - Freeform, con-men, criminal activity
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-07-12
Updated: 2018-05-31
Packaged: 2018-07-23 13:18:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 35
Words: 197,872
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7464822
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/planningconquest/pseuds/planningconquest
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Darth Vader searches for the team of thieves that stole a personal ship from his own hanger in the middle of a manhunt.<br/>Luke has a team of thieves and their last job might have gotten them in trouble.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Five At the Table

**Author's Note:**

> Luke is an amnesiac criminal that's been working scams and cons as long as he can remember (it's not the long). His work takes him into the crosshairs of an angry Sith Lord all while trying to hide from the only person he can remember from his past. The same person who stole his memories.

It was the oddest sight that any of the ISB agents had ever seen. None of them would have ever begun to imagine the scene floating on the holo-projector before them. All of them were seated in their chairs, staring at their screens and waiting for commands. Someone cleared their throat, sending a ripple of cringes and reflexive ducking around the room. 

“Steady, men,” From his position behind the entire crew of agents, Agent Kallus pulled at the collar of his uniform. ‘This is the most important Sabacc game in the galaxy at the moment. As the intel comes I want everything verified, checked, and used. If anything goes wrong.”

On the holoporjector the disguised form of their commander sank into a plush seat at a round sabacc table. Five people sat around, two women and the men. A motley collection of aliens and scarred humans with money to spend and gossip to trade, the entire table was ready to spread the latest story that had shaken the galactic underworld and the citizen alike. 

Three months of work had gone into getting their man into that Sabacc game. Three months of too-clever manipulations and sleight of hand tricks that left all the agents watching slack jawed and a little more frightened their commander. For three months the ship had chased empty rumors, quiet mutterings and little details that would have been overlooked of not for their firm diligence. 

“Comms check,” Kallus said, twiddling his thumbs before forcing himself to remain still. 

“I’m clear.” The beautiful agent manning the bar swiped her rag through a glass.

“All ready on the streets.” Four disguised drunks appeared on different projector. All of them were slumped into the dirt and muck of the road and had been for hours. 

An agent in front of Kallus turned about, shielding his mic and asked, “Are we sure this is going to work? We’re going against standard operating procedure.”

“We wouldn’t have gotten this far is we hadn’t followed his exact orders,” Kallus glanced back at the screen. The beings were presenting their buy ins. A sizable number of credits were sitting on the table and the game hadn’t even begun. “We’re learned a lot from this case, Agent. I do not think now is to present faithlessness to our commander.” 

“No, sir,” The man wiped his forehead nervously, “We’re ready at the reports.”

“Good,” Kallus cleared his throat, “Sir, we’re ready up here.”

 

Talon Karrde, a clever information broker and a decent con-man with twelve outstanding warrants on his head. 

Mire the Hutt, she owned eight illegal glitterstim factories and ran bank fraud out on the outer rim. The Imperial bounty on her hide exceeded four million credits.

Senator Orn Free Ta of the Galactic Empire. Kallus wasn’t surprised to see the slimy slave owner here; the corrupt politician was untouchable at this point but maybe not for long. A blue twi’lek’s slave was hanging off his side. 

Ex-Senator Mon Mothma of the Rebel Alliance to Restore the Republic sat directly across the disguised Imperial. If Kallus hadn’t been given very specific orders on what to do then he would have been very interested in the woman. Their man was there for information and information only. Capturing the criminals was not allowed if they wanted to keep their people safe.

The beings settled as the cards were passed around, all glancing at each other with wicked smiles. Sitting in the largest chair, wrapped under red and gold heavy cloaks and with a false respirator. Several attractive chains of gold and silver draped around the false head covering. It made the most dangerous man in the room look exotic, almost beautiful. If it weren’t for the fact that he towered over every other being the room and exuded and air of casual violence that he luxuriated in on a daily basis the man would have been an object of intense interest. As it was he was dangerous and the other card players knew that a game like this could turn genial to violent in milliseconds. None would prod his for personal information just as the other would not push each other. They came for money and information.

No one would have guessed that Darth Vader was sitting somewhat peacefully at a table with the four sentients in the galaxy he wanted dead the most. Inside his helmet he had access to a comm channel that went directly to the agents and one that allowed him to speak to those at the table. He could turn off his vocoder to relay information to the agents and to speak to them if he didn’t wish for the other card players to hear him. 

“Comms are clear,” Kallus said, watching his command accept the cards and splay them open in his hands. “Ready when you are, milord.”

“Good.” Over the comms Darth Vader’s voice was strange, not the frightening rumbling bass that they had heard initially. This sounded richer, more gentle but with a firm edge of durasteel that fooled no one into thinking he was less dangerous. His vocoder had been disguised and many of the agents wondered if the voice and accent he was using was closer to his actual voice. 

“Keep chatter to a minimum, I do not wish to have my work interfered with. If you have any observations then offer them.”

“Yes, milord.” They had been working this case for three months. The entire ISB crew that he had assembled knew his modus apperendi by this point. He wanted suggestions and observation during his trips into the underbelly of the galaxy. Many people noticed different details and he wanted all the information available. “Milord,” he cleared his throat, “Are you sure?”

“I do not need to cheat to win, Agent,” Vader rumbled over the comms.

“Taa’s packing skiffers,” The agent at the bar said, ducking to pick up a new bottle from the bottom shelf, “the Hutt has cameras in place to get your numbers. She’s wearing a false skin to hid the transmitter where she hears the cards people have got.”

“Wait until my command and then short out her transmitter,” Vader commanded; sliding a chip forward, “Mothma and Karrde will cheat the honest way.” The game settled into a steady opening pace, players feeling for the others weaknesses and trying to see where they could cheat.

“Tell me,” Orn Free Taa wiggled his fattened lekku about as he swiveled his head to look at Vader, “What brings you to this game?”

“What brings us all to this game,” Karrde asked, sipping his drink and smirking at the twi’lek, “Jabba’s gone. Cleaned out and digesting in his own pic of sarlacc and Xizor just made sweet love to an interrogation droid. Unless I’m mistaken he’s still hanging from his skyhook by his ankles.”

“He is,” Vader affirmed, a few agents cringed, “He.”

“Deserved what he got,” Mothma’s sabacc face was excellent and she tossed a chip into the pile, shuffling her cards in her hand, “I must say I am not killer nor do I lust for blood but seeing those reports of his death,” Her smile was just a hair too sharp, “It was a relaxing evening.”

“For all of us,” Mire laughed in her thick Basic, “He is gone from the gunrunning and smuggling. More pilots for us to poach.” Information cost money at this table and cards were only the signals they sent to one another. “But the tailhead is right, what are you doing here?”

“I am here to take your money and dignity,” Vader said, his voice rolling and accented. It was an accent Kallus had never heard. “I intend to leave with both.”

“Bold words, good sir,” Mothma reshuffled her cards, “I hope you do not allow arrogance to overwhelm you.”

“No,” Vader laid down his cards at the droids call. Mire took this hand, chuckling as her own miserable attending slaved pushed the pile of credits into her bag. None of the players were stupid enough to think she had won by chance. Mire the Hutt had been allowed to win the hand. 

‘Do you know what interests all of us?” Taa laughed, picking up his drink as the cards changed numbers. “I think that last heist was enough to get our attention.”

“I believe robbing Lord Vader blind was quite the trick,” Mothma shrugged at the curious glance from Karrde. It hadn’t been an Alliance job. “That ship was due for a museum.”

“Taking it from his hanger bay and flying it under his own codes,” Mire laughed, “I am still enjoying re-reading that report.” 

“It was amusing,” Vader agreed. Kallus sighed. Vader had been near apocalyptic with rage when the decoy was discovered. To find that the thieves had stolen right into his own palace was enough to make him abandon his duties as Supreme Commander of the Imperial forces to find the crew that had pinched his ship. “It was a clever trick. In my days I have never seen the like of it done.”

“I have,” Taa patted his slave on her rump, “But not from such a man as Vader.” 

“If they are discovered they will be in much danger,” Mothma picked up her new card, slipping it into her hand, “I pity them.”

“You cannot hire them, Mothma,” Mire laughed at the woman’s tight smile, “They would be discovered by the agents in your rebellion in seconds. Vader would be upon you faster than scavengers on a crashed ship on Jakku.”

“There would be no mercy,” Vader promised, ducking his head. The jewelry upon his coverings jangled. Kallus wasn’t worried that they had no information yet, they were only one hand in to the game and millions of credits would be won or lost tonight. 

“As the information broker you must want them,” Mire offered Karrde who tipped his drink her direction and tossed it back. “What do you want with thieves and con-men.”

“What we all want,” Vader interrupted, flashing the piece of jewelry attached to his wrists. They were dotted with gems that were only mentioned in textbooks and history. A few kryat stones and kyber crystals attached to precious chains. “Experienced people to work for us, there is much that a decent crew of thieves can accomplish.” 

“That is true,” Mire’s bulbous eyes were on Vader’s jewelry. An agent cringed as the lecherous smile told the entire ISB crew she was eyeing their commander in a distinctly non-professional manner. It had happened before; many aliens were attracted to the unspoken wealth of his guise. Kallus had honestly never thought he’d see the day that Vader was propositioned. 

“With the Hutts the way they are,” Mothma’s change of grip on her cards was graceful, “I’m surprised you’re not looking for some thieves to rustle yourself up some money.”

“Bah!” Mire slapped her hand against her side, “Jabba did always have too many weaknesses for betting and human women. I do not see the appeal of either. They are both unreliable and stupid.”

“Oh?” Mothma’s smile was pleasant and the men at the table all inched back. Vader joined the motion simply to blend in, not that he feared Mothma. 

“You are a crusader for a lost cause,” Mire laughed, “If you worked for me then you’re profits would be like non-other. You as a criminal would be my crowning achievement this century.”

“Mothma is a criminal,” The woman in question shrugged at Vader’s words, “Do not allow her aloofness to fool you, hutt.”

“Ha! Criminal is not just a title,” Karrde smiled as the dealer changed the cards. Taa cursed and pushed his chips forward. This time, Vader took the hand, “It is a mindset. You got to think like a criminal, be a criminal. Senator,” Karrde tipped his drink at her, “You’re not one yet but keep it up and you will be.”’

“Thank you, Karrde,” Mothma said dryly, “Taa, what is your opinion?”

“I’m a respected Senator!” Taa boomed, as the new cards were dealt, “I am not a criminal.”

“Yet here you are,” Mire spoke, “consorting with us.”

“It lends to the curiosity as to what you are looking for here.” Vader said quietly, “Where criminals and rebels come to consort.”

“Taa is looking for the same crew that stole your ship,” an information analyst agent spoke quickly, “We cracked the codes on his financials. Whoever stole that ship also cleaned out most of Taa’s accounts. As of two days ago his safes were all cracked wide open at the same time. His interoffice memos tell us that he’s only got about two million credits left clothes and ships.”

“Well done,” Vader said, the woman blushed a dark red, “Analyze the different targets this crew has struck, find what makes them similar.”

“Aye, milord,” Kallus nodded to the analysts who dove into their work.

“Why the crew would dislike Vader pretty obvious,” Karrde said over the sound of Taa cursing, “But why would the same crew take everything but the clothes on your back?”

“Taa?” Mire looked over at the suddenly sweating twi’lek, “You are broke?”

“He is,” Vader affirmed suddenly, sounding devious. “The same crew too. His vaults have all been burgled. Someone set fire to your palace just yesterday, did they not?”

For anyone who wasn’t familiar with twi’lek facial expressions or body language the senator’s expression would not have shifted in the slightest. To four people who made if their business to know what others were thinking the man was an open book. 

“Ah,” Mothma’s smile was soft as the third hand was played, “You have no money.” 

“I have money,” Orn Fee Taa spat, his slaves leaned away from his flying hands, “I will have money.”

“Enough to cover the debt you will incur tonight?” Vader asked, tilting his head. Kallus closed his eyes, the Sith’s expressive body language was frightening. “I hope so.”

“Do not worry,” Taa assured them, “I will be fine. This is only a minor obstacle.” 

“I’m surprised I hadn’t heard before tonight,” Mire waved for the bet to double, “The same crew?”

“So it seems,” Mothma covered her mouth, “What a shame, you lost your fortune.”

“That’s a little odd,” that analyst spoke into the comms again, “She’s right, this crew takes who fortunes, reputations, and whole lives. Why would they target you for just a ship?”

“That ‘ship,” Vader growled, the woman cringed, “Was an antique from the Manadalorian wars. It is miraculous that we recovered it.”

“From Prince Xizor,” the woman rubbed her nose.

“Meaning?” On the holo Vader shifted his cards.

“They take everything from people and even if that ship was worth a few planets then why did it show up at Xizor’s? He doesn’t have an interest in antique ships or any sort of weaponry. He likes women, exotic plants, and having the upper hand. We know he bought it…..except……what if he didn’t?”

“Do you think the ship was planted?” Kallus asked.

“No,” Vader interrupted the musing, “He knew of the ship and of its existence on the black market and would have no doubt bought it.”

“What if he only knew for a short while?” The woman nodded frantically, “What if he hadn’t known the heist was taking place until the crew came to him with the ship? What if they sold it to him because they knew you would find it? What if the heist wasn’t meant for you but for you to be the muscle that destroyed the Black Sun? The Prince bought the ship because it had been yours and if it had been anyone else then he would have gotten away clean. Except that they wanted for us to know he had the stolen ship. Black market is normal unless it’s something that was supposed to end up in a museum run by Tarkin’s daughter.”

There were a few beats of silence on the ship save for the mutterings of the sabacc game.

“That is plausible.” 

“It does make sense,” The bartending agent offered up, pretending to flirt with a drunken Togruta.

“They knew that you would….kill….Prince Xizor for the theft.” Kill was too simple a word for what Vader had done to the criminal overlord. “The insult can’t stand against both a Grand Moff and the Supreme Commander.”

Even the Emperor would not be able to tell Tarkin and Vader to accept the insult that had been offered to them. Prince Xizor had purchased stolen property that was meant for the curator of a museum that was taken from Vader’s personal hanger. Everyone knew the moment the news broke that whoever was found with the ship would not be for much longer. 

“We’re still looking into the victims profiles to see why this crew would target them,” the analyst promised, “We’ll give it to you as soon as possible.” Being cramped on a ship meant for a much smaller crew in close quarters with Darth Vader meant that you either got really comfortable relaying information or you passed out and were left on the nearest Imperial base. 

“Go.” He switched the vocoder, “Who here has heard of the crew that seems to take such fiendish delight in conning some of the galaxies best con-men? And where do these sentients come from.”

“I heard,” Mire narrowed her eyes as Taa, forcing him to shove a good number of credits onto the table, “that they employ children to do their cons. A child cannot pilot a spaceship that is so ancient.” Vader privately disagreed. “That is terrible and clever.”

“I heard the same thing Nar Shadda,” Talon Karrde tipped back in his seat while the cards jumped again, “Kids to pull the cons. Kids who want money for food or shelter. They prey on those on those who can’t help themselves.”

“So do all of us,” Mire pointed out.

“I don’t wish to be lumped in with the rest of you,” Mothma sniffed, accepting another card from the dealer, “I do not take advantage of those who cannot help themselves. I do my best to hurt those types.”

“Of course,” Vader agreed, “Recruiting children to fight in a war is not in the slightest bit hypocritical of your mission statement. Allowing the children to become your terrorists in exchange for money and feeding them the lies that they are righteous.” Karrde’s eyebrows shot up, Senator Taa looked impressed despite his precarious position at the table. 

“Ouch,” An agent whispered, a hand reaching up to cover his mouth, “Ow.”

“You still cling to the lies of the Old Republic, Senator. Children do not need to fight wars or execute cons. They deserve homes and lives that are not tainted by the likes of anyone at the table.”

“Even yourself, Gentleman?” Mire asked, her youngest slave seemed to be looking at Vader with hope in his eyes. 

“Especially myself,” Vader nodded, the robes shifted when he produced another credit chip. “I will raise this hand, double.” 

“Make your final bets please,” the droid dealer said. Mothma was the picture of elegance when she met Vader’s bet. Karrde whistled but joined in. Only Senator Taa seemed to struggle with the decision.

“Is this too rich for your blood, Senator,” Vader asked; his chains and jewels sparkling under the artificial lights. 

“No,” Taa shook his fat jowls and grabbed the girl at his side, “She will be in the pot as well.” Mothma’s eyes sparked an unhealthy shade of murderous. Karrde frowned at him but didn’t look surprised. Mire the Hutt laughed heartily and Kallus wondered what Vader thought of it. He gave no outward sign of irritation or joy. The cards jumped a last time and Kallus gaped at Vader’s hand. 

Oh….he won the pot. How many times these criminals would want to play he had no idea but the final pot contained a slave, and 2.6 million credits. If they played again he could lose some of his money but if not then they would leave with a good amount of money. What would Vader do with a twi’lek slave? 

“Ha!” Taa settled his cards onto the table.

“Kallus, short out the Hutt’s transmitter,” Vader ordered. There was an obvious twitch in Mire’s body as the electrical device fizzled out and she tried to pretend it hadn’t. Karrde didn’t look angry when Mothma presented an impressive hand. “I believe the pot is mine.” Vader set his cards down.   
Taa hissed a vicious insult at Vader how crooked his hand at the trembling girl. “Do not play with beasts,” Vader said as the girl inched around Orn Free Taa and stood at the Sith’s side. The transmitter was passed into his possession. Kallus watched Mothma’s expression of dangerous rage as Vader considered the transmitter in his hand. 

“Gentleman, do you know what twi’lek slave can do? They are wonderfully trained and exotic!” Mire laughed as she raised a hooka to her wide lips. “I have several myself, they are wonderfully trained.”

“Trading the flesh of your own kind, Senator?” In the ship where the agents were watching there were some uncomfortable shifting and clearing of throats. “Mothma, how long has the Senator been doing this?”

“Too long,” Mothma replied, “For over 45 years.”

“A reason, I believe, that your entire planet hates you for.” An agent cleared their throat. Kallus remembered the vivid green stare of a green twi’lek pilot as the held a blaster to his face. 

“Indeed.” 

“Gentleman! Don’t tell me you are uncomfortable with a little slave?” There was a sudden tightening in Vader’s shoulders that told Kallus that his commander probably was. “It is a way of life! It is profit! Don’t you understand that?”

“More than you would ever begin to know,” the Sith intoned dangerously while Mothma sneered beautifully at the Hutt. The transmitter in his hand splintered into minuscule pieces as he clenched his fist. “Shall we play for another pot?” 

“Why not? I’ve got money to spend.” Karrde slugged back another shot, “But Taa’s out.”

“Agreed,” Mothma nodded, “Senator, we’ve cleaned you out.” Mothma had made a beautiful number of credits but not enough to justify sitting in the high stakes game. 

“Milord, as far as we can tell the entire table is there for information on the same people.” Kallus stroked his beard, “I’m not sure how.”

“It would seem,” Vader picked up his new hand, “That we are after the same crew.” Taa was being escorted forcibly out by Karrde’s and Mire’s goons. “I would suggest a trade of information. I know their motivations.”

“I know where they operate from.” Mothma said.

“I have information on them as well.” Mire added as she watched Taa get shoved from the room.

“I have names,” Karrde shrugged when all heads turned toward him, “What can I say, I’m good at my job.”

“Then here’s what I suggest,” The Sith leaned forward a bit, his robes shifting over his armor “Our collective information goes to the winner of the pot.”

“Our entrance fee can be the info we’ve got on them?” Karrde exchanged a glance with the rebel leader.

“No,” Mire waved her short arm, “I do not want to bet on information. I want to play for money. I will tell you what you want for free. The contest? Who finds them first.”

“A race, then?” Mothma nodded. Kallus knew she had entire teams of analysts who would sift through the information available. “Gentleman, do you agree.”

“Gentleman? I wonder why you have chosen that as my name.”

“It fits,” Mire said. Over the comms came a short bark of laughter that was immediately stifled. The bartender was sucking down a glass of water, chuckling. “You greeted me politely, no one does that.”

“You’re a hutt,” Karrde said, propping his feet onto the table, “Are we supposed to?”

“It fits,” Mothma said, “For now.”

“Indeed,” Vader nodded, “If we play for money and share the information then it will only be a contest to see who corners the con men the fastest.” 

“It should be fun,” Karrde’s grin was nothing short of piratical, “Mire, Mothma…Gentleman…you up for a race?”

Vader shifted dangerously in his seat, taking a classic sabacc pose. “Let us play.”

#$#$#

With two definte cheaters out of the way it was obvious that the game was going to be hotly contested. Mothma was soundly beating Karrde and Mire seemed to have taken personal interest in Vader. As nail biting as the game itself was it was nothing compared to the information being shared around the table. 

“They’re children,” Karrde said, “They don’t hire the children they are the children. None of them is older than 23. From what my contacts on Smuggler’s Moon say the muscle is the scariest but you’d never know it.” 

“Children,” Mothma shook her head, “Terrible.”

“Yeah, and only one alien on the whole crew. Some people think that she’s pantorian on account of her blue skin.”

“Do you think she’s pantorian?” Vader asked.

“I think she’s something I’ve never seen before.”

“Red eyes,” Mire said suddenly, “red eyes and blue skin. If she is from Pantora then someone had sex with the wrong species.”

Kallus wasn’t sure what red eyes and blue skin meant Vader obviously did. 

“Odd,” Mothma picked up a drink, “They only have four to the crew.”

“Four,” Four people had stolen a ship from the living room of one of the most powerful men in galaxy. “Children.”

“I’m impressed,” Karrde laughed, “Can you imagine what was going through his mind when he walked into the that room and found out that it was decoy on display?”

“I would have paid to see that,” Mothma admitted, “But I’m more disturbed that out there in the galaxy there are four children who are so skilled at the criminal arts that they’ve stolen fortunes.”

“Why does this disturb you?” Vader wondered, trading a few cards with the droid, “Tell me, Mothma, did the children jedi commanders disturb you?”

“Jedi?” Karrde perked up, “Are we talking about jedi?”

“Bah! My nephew, Grakkus, is obsessed with those fools. He collects their relics. I do not understand the fascination.”

“The Jedi were specifically trained to handle the stress and rigors of the war,” Mothma replied coolly as she won a few hundred thousand credits. “I believe the Jedi would have won the war if they had not been betrayed. Their supernatural abilities granted them power beyond what I could ever imagine. To not use this power for the better good is what is criminal.”

“Forcing children to fight a war to force citizens to remain subject to a government they do not want any longer makes much more sense.” Karrde chuckled as the rebel’s eyes went flinty. 

“Gentleman, I know you are a private person but where you a Separatist?”

“I should have been,” The various agents in hiding all shared a look of confusion. 

“You were a Republican and yet you mock the Republic.”

“One can still defend an institution even if the lies and corruptions are apparent,” Vader took a new set of cards. The pot was smaller than the last but Kallus was less concerned with the money. 

“What of those thieves though? As interesting as your conversation would be I’m more interested in the four thieves that outwitted Vader and a whole planet full of people looking for them.”

“Only Vader as the recordings of what happened.”

“Speaking of recordings,” A plucky analyst adjusted her mike, “I have an idea. We couldn’t differentiate between the recordings that were different right? The ones that was untampered and the one that wasn’t. Well, the differences were just enough to send up looking in the wrong direction, toward Senator Organa. Milord, I don’t think that the second droid was even there. I think that that droid, the only thing to go in and out of your residence the whole day, wasn’t even a droid.”

“What?” Kallus looked around to the woman who shrugged, “That’s impossible.”

“Continue, Agent,” Vader commanded.

“Well, there were no other ways to get into your residence. Those doors and the hanger doors but the hanger doors are guarded and patrolled and a person would have been seen. A droid like the one that showed up, wouldn’t have raised any red flags. Because it said it came from Senator Organa then the men at the door would have waived it through to wait for you. But if the droid was actually a person and not a droid then getting to the ship would have been fairly simple. Using your codes and taking off from the hanger while wiping the footage and recordings would have been easy for anyone who was inside your office.”

“You suggest that someone managed to splice my own office?”

“Aye,” the woman cringed, “A small enough person could fit into a droid costume and the guards would have never anticipated it.”

“Indeed,” It was crazy and bizarre and it made the most sense. Something so complicated and yet so simple made the whole theft seem a sick sort of elegant. “Well done, Agent.” Why hadn’t anyone thought about it before? Probably because they were obsessed with trying to recover the data from a droid that said it didn’t remember visiting Lord Vader’s palace. Of course there was no ghost data recover, it had never existed in the first place. 

Mothma was looking at her cards with an unfocused gaze that told everyone at the table she was considering the move herself. Kallus wondered how many rebels could pretend to be droids. 

“Their targets are primarily those who have victimized people,” Vader said, his adjusted his cowl, “Black Sun was a criminal empire. Jabba owned slaves, police forces, Imperial governors and the outer rim. They wanted these people to suffer and to lose everything they had. Senator Taa is a slave trader of his own planet. Whatever their personal motivations it seems they intent to ruin the bloated crass criminals who had ruined those whose shoulder they have stamped upon.”

“They sound good for your rebellion, Mothma,” Karrde said as an analyst looked from his work station and nodded. 

“That’s just what we came up with, sir.” 

“I’m not so sure,” Vader replied Karrde. The information broke took the next hand. “I believe they are doing this as false advertisement. Taking apart Jabba, Black Sun, and Taa is simple and easy, conning them out of money and lives is easy as well. If they target those like them then it would make sense they simply do it to have a greater cut of money when the scam comes through.” 

“That makes sense,” Kallus muttered, “And it seems the most plausible except if they were after wealthy then they would have kept those slaves they took from Jabba. 1,400 people just vanished into thin air. It’s a big galaxy but not enough to hide that many slaves.” 

“So there’s a crew of four children. One of whom is an alien and the others are human. We think they’re vigilantes but we can’t be sure.” Mothma sighed, “They are an interesting puzzle.”

“I would think that Rebel Intelligence would have already discovered something beyond this,” Vader prodded. He’d been insulting the woman all night even though they had both teamed up to ruin Senator Taa.

“They’ve rebuffed her offers of employment,” Karrde whispered to Vader, “They don’t like her.”

“I don’t like the human woman either,” Mire said, her bulbous eyes rolling in her head, “I want the crew to help me subjugate the Hutts. I want my own kind to bow to me.”

“I just need people to lift jewels and diamonds for me,” Karrde shrugged.

“To gather Imperial Intelligence and ruin a few select officers.”

“I would like to use them for my own purposes as well,” Vader admitted. Kallus wondered how much was the truth. “But we must find them first.”

“If they operate out of Nar Shadda they can’t be too hard to find, milord,” the half-dressed form of the best infiltration specialist on the team was wandering out of the refresher. Her eyes were sagged with tiredness and she looked ready to keel over. “Five days with the right clothes and cover stories we can find their base of operations pretty quick.”

“Duly noted, Agent. Do you think you can find them off this information?”

“I can, we have the disguises we need plus a few extra. We’ve got the manpower and the tools to track these thieves down. Do you want us to leave tonight?”

There were several minutes of silence before Vader answered, “No, the crew must rest and recuperate before we attempt further infiltration. I will return to the vessel and we will leave tomorrow afternoon.”

“Yes, Lord Vader.”

“Now, Karrde, what of these names you offered?”

“Those? You’re all looking for someone called Aphra and another person named Gohan.”

“This is going to make this job so much easier,” Kallus muttered to himself. “Three months for two names.”

“Those are the only ones I’ve got. I don’t know who does what or even where they live but Gohan and Aphra can get you those answers.”

“Jackpot!” Crowed an analyst and high fived the person across the aisle. Kallus would have issued a reprimand but this was groundbreaking. 

“This will be my last pot,” Mire announced and Mothma quickly agreed. 

“Do you want to play another hand?” Karrde offered as the charge changed for the last time. Vader shook his head but pressed his hand to the table and showed his cards. For the second time that night he took home the pot.  
“I’d suspect you of cheating,” Mire said, already slithering away, “But I too have cheated.”

Hey,” Karrde spread his hands, “I cheat the honest way.”

“Which is why you lost,” Vader rose to his terrifying height and took care of the money he’d won that evening. Mire made a quick exit and Karrde followed a moment.

“What is Mothma waiting for?” Someone asked. 

“Can we arrest her when she comes out?” The bartending agent asked. Her screen showed a whole crowd of entertained thugs and bounty hunters all rolling over in their seats with laughter. Her jokes were on the verge of painful and totally hilarious. 

“You cannot.”

“Oh well.” Three months ago Vader would not have allowed or tolerated such a questioning of his orders but you couldn’t spent three months in close quarters and not expect to get comfortable with someone. Even if that person was Darth Vader. He was still aloof and clearly above all of them but the past three months had made him seem almost human. There were moments that were painfully surreal when all of them watching the holo saw something that indicated to a person beneath his Sith title. Seeing him doing mundane things such as walking down a street without an escort or sending people scattering made the agents twitch. When Vader had caught a pick pocketing child he’d stopped them and used them as a guide to a proper hotel. Watching the second in command of the empire toss a credit coin to a dirty rodian child was enough to make him rethink his whole career. 

“Gentleman,” Mothma began, Vader turned enough to glance at her.

“No.”

“You have no idea.”

“Leave my business to me, Mothma,” The woman’s face turned a light shade of furious pink. “You will not leave this place with this woman.” Kallus glanced at the image of the twi’lek who hadn’t moved from Vader’s side. “Return to your rebellion.” With a jerking motion at the twi’lek, Vader stormed from the room.

“Agents, I will be at the ship in two hours. Turn off the projectors and comms. I will contact you if necessary. 

“As you wish, milord.” Kallus nodded to the other agents in the cramped ship and one by one the blue projections went down as the crews began their return to the ship. 

#$#$#$

Vasma trailed behind the being in red and gold, unsure of their intentions. Being tossed into the pot as a bet had been a little surprising but when she considered what the other card players had said, Vasma was not surprised any more. She had hoped, of the four others at the table, she might have been won by Mothma. Karrde was a stretch and the person they called Gentleman was an unknown factor that frightened her. His muffled respirator was frightening as was his smooth accent that seemed too gentle to be coming from someone of that size. The jewels that hung around his head and arms were impressive and she knew enough to guess that he was a person of great wealth. 

Before tonight she had never even heard of him though. 

She followed him through the marketplace, head bowed and trying to look as unobtrusive as possible in the crowded street. Her future was uncertain but the transmitter control had been crushed. Did that mean she wasn’t a slave? Was the person who had won her in the bet going to free her? What could Gentleman possibly want from her?

“Do you have a name?” Vasma had heard the voice most of the night and it still unnerved her. She moved out of the way of a dug that was staggering around. Swallowing down her shout of surprise when the massive hand encircled her arm and pulled her close to the robed side, “Stay close, these streets will not favor you.”

“Master.”

“No,” the robed figured looked up toward the sky and removed the hand around her arm, “I am no one’s master.” Vasma blinked and waited for him to continue. The crowd of night shopping citizens flowed freely around them. The person was a boulder in a river, unmoving and dominating. 

“My name is Vasma,” she said suddenly. Self-consciously she wrapped her arms around herself. It was late and she was only wearing the skimpy outfit the Senator had allowed her. “What should I call you?” 

“Gentleman will suffice for now,” He said shortly, “Come, Vasma. There is much to do before the sun rises.”

The first place in the busy market place they stopped was a tailor. Vasma was ushered into the backroom and given full choice of anything she wanted. A little confused and frightened she immediately chose the colors and style that reflected the man waiting in the front room. She was desperate to cover her body and prayed to the silent gods that Gentleman would not be angry. So many of this galaxy expected twi’lek women to be seductresses or vixen and if she was given a choice then Vasma would begin to reclaim her bodily dignity. 

She did not walk behind but at his side, navigating the crowded streets with ease. From what she could tell they were grocery shopping. Gentleman picked up a dozen loaves of bread, a collection of meats to feed twenty people and more than a few random items meant for personal hygiene Vasma was not left to carry any of it but rather Gentleman carried everything. His manner was polite but short and he moved demanding respect and space. She wondered what kind of man he was. Underneath the heavy robes had to be a person. What kind of person? AS they made their way away from the market place and toward the hangers that lined the spaceport Vasma found herself growing more and more curious. 

Gentleman led her into a dingy hanger with a crumbling door and revealed a beautifully maintained Imperial owned ship sitting in the middle.

“You’re!” 

“Silence,” Gentleman moved across the hanger, gesturing for her to follow. The loading ramp opened and a tall human in an Imperial ISB uniform and red sideburns stepped down.

“Sir,” the human saluted.

“Without a second wasted Gentleman unloaded two oversized meash bags into the agents arms. “Come with me, Kallus. Vasma, come as well.” Vasma ducked past the human struggling under the weight of the food to emerge into a semi-crowded living/work space. Over a dozen Imperial agents in various states of dress, turned as one as Gentleman and Vasma emerged. Their collective snapped salute made the twi’lek wonder if she ought to do the same.

“Help, please.” Kallus staggered into the room. 

“Is this?” A female human with dark complexion turned to Gentleman who settled into the largest chair in the room, “groceries?” 

“Unless you wish to continue your steady diet of military rations?” 

“This is great!” Someone coughed uncomfortably, “Thank you?”

“I will be processing information for the next few hours, Agents.” Gentleman made no effort to removed his robes as Vasma lowered her own veil to watch the gaggle humans closely, “Eat, rest, and recuperate and senior officers are to meet back here in 18 hours.”

“YES, SIR!” The crowd saluted again and made for a separate door with the bags of freshly made food in hand. It was an amusing sight to see them all scatter so eagerly and carting the food away like children with treats. In the word rooms Vasma once again found herself alone with Gentleman. 

“You must be high ranking.”

“I am.” 

“Then?”

“This conversation is best left for a different time.” He seemed occupied with the scrolling lines of data, “Go and eat. You will be shown to a bunk. If any of the agents give you trouble then inform me.”

“Yes, sir,” her offered a weak salute before fleeing.


	2. Intel Gathering PT 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Meet the crew! Sort of. You'll get to know them later.

Luke woke with a start. Jolting out of bed, he surveyed the room with a frantic gaze. Faring that the specter the haunted his nightmares might have somehow forced its way into his reality. There was no one there. A few scattered components of a moisture vaporator, a barely assembled droid from the Clone War, and priceless figurine carved from some desert stone that he'd pinched from the vault of a Grand Moff. His room was empty. Sighing, he pushed back the blankets and set his feet on the floor. It was cold, as usual. 

He glanced at the far corner. There, laid in silver, were a few dozen small crystals that hummed in the relative darkness.The were uniform in color, a deep sea blue that Luke had only ever seen on Naboo. The necklace wasn't for wearing, it wasn't for hiding in a vault. Luke kept it in his room, hung around an ancient lamp, for comfort. 

He padded over to the corner, resting his fingertips on the humming crystals. They didn't glow bright enough to be a nightlight, something his crew wouldn't tease him about if he had on anyway, but they exuded a gentle sort of comfort that almost seemed to remind him of something. Luke kept a near priceless piece of ancient jewelry hanging from a lamp as something to help him recover from nightmares. There was something almost perverse about that. Something he wouldn't think about mostly because he did't care. He leaned closer to the necklace, drinking in the intricate details of the wires and the placement of the crystals. They seem to hum at him, pulsing faintly. 

With sleep out of the question and not feeling properly motivated to do anything else, Luke pulled on his robe (stolen from a pompous jerk of a boy he'd met at a dinner party) and left his room. The renovated Separatist base was the home of the crew he worked with. At this time in the morning there was only one person who would still be awake. Luke headed toward the kitchens, hoping to catch his older friend preparing some food. 

"What will it be this morning?" He asked, the person at the stove didn't falter in her movements. She had much better hearing than he did and had probably heard him three rooms down. Gohan flashed him a sharp grin as she chopped more heavy tubers. Luke stepped from the dim hallways into the brightly lit kitchen, "The Return of Corellian Glop? Corellian Glop Strikes Back? The Revenge of the Corellian Glop?"

"I'm not obligated to feed your ungrateful ass, Luke," Gohan reminded him, wielding her blade with dangerous skill, "You can go eat grass outside if you're going to make fun of me." 

"I am grateful," Luke said, hopping onto one of the barstools across the worktable, "I heard on the news that the last time someone ran tests on my vomit they were amazed to discover a whole new species of bacteria! I think they named it after you."

"Ya wouldn't have upchucked if you hadn't thrown your half-delirious self through a window," Her red eyes gleamed, "I think that made the top of Galaxies Stupidest Criminals. Don't bring my wonderful food into this."

"Sure thing," Luke nodded agreeably while the blue alien continued to work. Finding his levity and humor slipping he spun around in his chair a bit. The older alien was perceptive and clever and it was only a matter of time before she noticed...

"For a guy with no memories you sure do get a lot of nightmares."

"I'm not dreaming of memories," He admitted quietly, not glancing her direction, "I'm dreaming about losing them."

"Same guy as always?"

"Yeah." 

"Do you want some tea?"

"If you don't mind."

"I want you to know," Gohan lifted the cutting board and shoved the sliced, bleeding tubers into a the sizzling skillet, "I'm going to give you the most wretched position in our next con if you make fun of my breakfasts again."

"Oh no!' Luke gasped in mock horror while his friend set out mugs and tea bags, "What will it be this time? It can't be worse than pretending to be that museum curators grandson." He grimaced, remembering the five weeks spent trying to gain the access codes to a safe while fooling the curator who had it. The man had been mostly blind but he'd still managed to catch Luke breaking into his office every single time. Luke had spent just as much time getting disciplined as he had trying to set up the last of the con. Luke still wasn't convinced that the curator hadn't known he was getting played. The whole job had been too easy even if they had gotten away scot free. 

"That one was fun!" Gohan laughed, her white teeth flashed in a brilliant smile, "I don't know why you're upset. Doora was the who had it the hardest afterrall."

"I don't think the pain of not getting to test out illegal weapons is anywhere near the pain of getting walloped every fourth day or so."

"You shouldn't have gotten caught," his friend said pitilessly. Luke pouted, "It's a good incentive for not getting caught."

It had been and Luke had hated it every time. Never mind that the curator had actually been one of the few adults in his life who wasn't actively trying to ruin it. 

"Was it the same person," Gohan's voice shifted a bit, "This time?"

"I guess," he blinked at the mug of steaming tea set in front of him. "the same man is chasing me. I can't get away and then it's just pain."

"Thank goodness you don't scream in your sleep," Gohan took her mug with her when she turned back to the stove an the sizzling tubers. "Doora would have to kill you." As the youngest in the merry band of robbers at the tender age of 10, the sharpshooter needed her sleep. She was not a morning person and thought little of tossing tear gas grenades into the hallways if she thought the others were being noisy. "Did you take any of those sleeping medications that the old woman on Nar Shadda gave you? Those were supposed to help."

"They did but this dream is like a bacteria. It evolves with every sleeping medication I take." 

"Hmmm, did you ask Aphra?"

"You know what Aphra says."

"What?" The scarred human, hardly past twenty, wandered into the kitchen. She looked like she hadn't gone to sleep yet. "What do I say?"

"That you're not anyone's mother," Luke said, watching the other human stumble toward the caf machine. 

"You're all too ugly to be my children,' Aphra said, yawning explosively. "And I hate every one of you."

"Then I can just kick you off my base?"

"Don't be stupid."

"Hey, if you're gone then I don't have to deal with homicidal droids running about."

"Have either of you checked the news?" Aphra demanded, picking up a spare datapad, "Or any of the intel reports?"

"Not yet." 

"Is something up?"

"Could be," Arpha slid onto the stool next to Luke. Unlike him, her feet actually touched the floor, "Somebody's after us." 

"Some one is always chasing us," Luke pointed out. "We did do a lot of pretty noticeable things."

"Someone different," Aphra frowned, biting her lip, "Our agent didn't get much but that apparently intel on us was a hot ticket in a sabacc game two nights ago."

"Who was playing?" A familiar expression overcame Gohan's features. A calculating gleam entered her eyes, "Did they get that?"

"Mothma, Orn Free Taa, Mire the Hutt, Talon Karrde and some person that was only identified as Gentleman." Luke sat up straight, a frown on his face. 

"Who was the last one?"

"Gentlman," Gohan said, "Do you know them?"

"No....it's just...I think this might be significant? I think we need to get more intel on this guy?"

"If he's looking for us it could be for a job?"

"I don't think so," Luke frowned, sipping his tea, "I think this guys is going to be trouble. We need to know who he is so we can guard against him."

"Damn!" Gohan tossed her spatula onto the skillet and flipped off the stove, "Your feelings are never wrong. How much trouble?"

Luke thought back to the comforting energy of the crystals and frowned, "A lot, like, he could take us apart sort of trouble." 

"What if we lurk around and get intel?"

"I'm not sure, but we do need to know what he wants."

"Wow, that guy is really big," Aphra flipped the datapd around to show them a picture of a hulking shrouded in robes with a confused twi'lek beside him in identical robes.

'He's got nice taste in jewelry." Luke said, he did like to collect it. Not so much to wear but for the sake of hoarding it so no one else could have it. "Those crystals look kinda familiar."

"Like the ones from your room?"

"Yeah....just like them. Gohan, what do you think of waiting until later to do our next heist?"

"I agree, we're going to need intel on this Gentleman guy. Luke, you get to take point on this intel gathering trip. When Doora gets up get the street rat disguises and head out when you're ready. Aphra, do you want to help?"

"Not yet, I'm still working on my project."

"Good idea, we don't want to show all of our faces yet."

"What are you going to be going?"

"Manipulating the stock market," she shrugged, "I suggest you try to get a few more hours of sleep Luke. Daylight isn't here for three hours yet."

Luke nodded, draining his tea, he took one last look at the mysterious person and went back to bed. This time, his sleep was dreamless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you see to many errors in typing it's because the computer I typed this one was a piece of crap and the keys stuck and broke.


	3. A Token Chase Scene

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke meets Gentleman and Doora wants to shoot him for being stupid.

The second time Luke woke up Doora was waiting in the kitchen. Her gaze was unfocused and she chewed on the steaming pile of meat and tubers sent in front of her with the attentiveness of a herded nerf. Knowing just how long it took her to properly wake up, he didn't bother her. Instead, he made a beeline for the iced tea that Gohan had obviously brewed up in the last few hours. The pitcher was warm under his fingers but Luke didn't mind. 

Doora wasn't a morning person, already a combative person she was downright hellish if someone woke her before she was good and ready. It didn't pose much of a problem when all of them were on a job but once she had returned to the relative safety of their home, it was a different story. 

"What's the skinny?" Luke turned around, holding his glass up and eyeing the younger human. 

"What?"

"There's some intel we're supposed to get. Apparently someone is sniffing at our heels," Doora shrugged, dropping her head to the table and pushing the half-eaten bowl away, "So what's the skinny?"

"Oh, uh. We got some intel from a source on Nar Shadda. Apparently information on us was a big deal at a sabacc game three nights back. We got a list of the people attending and we know all of them except for someone named Gentleman."

"An alias?"

"Yeah. This guy is big, wears robes and was seen with a twi'lek woman whose name we do not know yet. They look like their going to be skulking around there for a while so Gohan wants us to check it out."

"Why this guy? We pissed of the Hutts and what's left of Black Sun, everyone wants a bite of us."

"This guy feels important," Luke said, passing her the container of salt when Doora made pathetic motions at it. She still hadn't lifted her head from the table and was looking like she was going back to sleep. "I got a bad feeling."

"Oh damn." Doora finally sat up, glowering, "you and your feelings. I swear. Every time you get a bad feeling we always have more trouble. They're like a...a..Shitstorm Weather Forecaster. Good Evening!" Doora adopted a bleary eyed persona of a meteorologist, "Today Luke had a bad feeling. This means there's a 99 percent chance of a shitstorm and it's coming right atcha!" 

"Thanks, Doora. I'm glad to know you value my feelings."

"Thankfully they've saved us as much trouble as they've caused." She yawned again, pillowing her head in her hands. 

Luke sniffed in mock irritation before tipping Doora's bowl toward himself, "Did you taste any of this before you ate it?"

"My taste buds don't kick in until noon, you know that."

"I'm pretty sure Gohan could feed you arsenic in the morning and you wouldn't notice until the next day."

"I'd be dead," She said. "So, we're going to Nar Shadda to what?"

"Infiltrate some kid gangs and see if we can't get info on this Gentleman."

"If he's so much trouble then we aren't we leaving him alone? You know what happens when you poke a sleeping nexu. If wakes up and kriffing eats you."

'I guess," He shrugged, "Do you want to come or not?"

'Well' duh. If I don't go who is going to drag your sorry butt out of trouble."

"Someone else who takes pity on me."

"Yeah, you've got one of those faces. People just can't resist the cute smile can they?"

"Hey!" Luke's smile was wide and sarcastic, "who else would be the grifter? you?" Luke was the face of the con-men for multiple reasons. The first and foremost was that his face was softer, gentler, and he smiled easily. Luke could disarm anyone with a smile and a bashful look. He could spin stories and tales to baffle and confuse anyone he came across. A quick thinker and and fast on his feet, Luke would usually get himself out of trouble as fast as he got into it. Doora, on the other hand, was a scarred, bitter, and had not manners to speak of. She was grown up on Nar Shadda, in the pits of poverty and pain, and had been an efficient addition to the team after Gohan discovered how well she handle any sort of weapon. It didn't matter much that she was only about 11. She couldn't yet hit hard enough to knock someone down but she had invented plenty of weapons to do the job for her. 

"You're lucky you're so cute," Doora grumbled, "otherwise I'd break your stupid nose."

"Still not awake?"

'I'm getting there." 

"What's going on?" Gohan moved into the kitchen with an old Separatist officers cap perched on her head. "Doora, don't kill Luke before you leave. He won't be able to get you your jawa juice."

'I don't drink jawa juice!"'

"Of course you don't," Gohan set her slimmer datapad onto the table and began typing in commands onto the virtual keyboards. Her datapad was little wider and longer but did not have the same nightmarish clunkiness of a normal datapad. It's screen resolution was several times better and she had installed a baffling number of programs into it. Unfortunately the thing only responded to her fingerprints so Luke couldn't carry it away to his room to experiment on. "Here, this is Gentleman. We've identified the twi'lek as a woman named Vasma. She was part of the final pot of the sabacc game. Formerly a slave to Orn Free Taa. We don't know if she's been freed yet or if she's a slave but she's always seen with Gentleman." Equal expressions of disgust was mirrored on their faces. Slavers were something all of them were happy to ruin. "They've got a room in the sector right next to the Corellian one. that's the one usually reserved for people with money and weird habits."

'Have the hutts been bothering them?"

"No, all the agents said was that the guy is there with the twi'lek. Don't know when they made planet fall or in which ship."

"I can go figure that out," Doora volunteered, "Luke can pick their pockets and see if he learns anything."

"That's not a bad idea but I'm not sure if the Gentlmean would notice it. I mean, this guy cleaned out Mire the Hutt and Talon Karrde. The reason I'm sending you two is because Aphra and I sort of made an impact on the local population a while back." 

"That was a glorious impact," Doora said, "I was impressed. Even if it nearly killed you two."

"Like you'd miss us."

"I'm too short to reach the shelves where you hide your stash of snacks and all the chairs are made with the ships material. I need you alive to feed me."

"I feel so loved." 

"I feel used."

"I feel like we should focus," Aphra re-emerged with a grin, "How long until you guys fly out?"

"Whenever Doora joins the land of the living and decided to act like a normal person."

"Don't forget to make sure she get a nap en route to Nar Shadda," Gohan said, "I don't know much about baby humans but do know they need food and a lot of sleep."

"I'll take a nap," Doora rolled her eyes, because I want to not because you told me to." 

"What ever if takes," Gohan shrugged, "the mission files, Aphra?"

"Here you go!"

"Now, this guy doesn't seem to be one who spends his money on clubs or drinks and stuff. The most we can tell is that he has a hotel room with the twi'lek. It's a nice one and there a bunch of people on Nar Shadda who wear his colors. So far we've got ten people in his colors running around. We're pretty sure they're coming for us but until we know exactly what they want then keep clear, got it?"

"How do you want us to approach Gentleman?" Doora asked, "Or do you want to leave it to Luke?"

"Doora, go long range. Get the sniper rifle and take your favorite rooftops. Luke, you see what happens if you pick his pocket. I want to know how he reacts. If he causes trouble then, Doora, you get to shoot him."

"Nice."

"Now, who else needs something?"

"We're good," Luke nodded enthusiastically.

"And while you're there bring us back some of those pastries from the Corellian sector. I really like those."

"Go it," Luke grinned at Doora who rolled her eyes,

"I'll go get Dinris,"

"I still can't believe you name your blasters."

"Oh shut up."

#$#$#$#

Vasma watched Gentleman turn down another street and followed nervously. "Sir, what are we?"

"We are waiting." He relied, tossing a coin to a woman selling perfectly useless trinkets. The man paused to pick out a small woven doll made with a dark blue dye. A little baffled, she watched it disappear into his robes. 

"For what?" She asked, the Imperial agents had been very clear that she was not to ask a lot of questions. She did not want to anger the man. Unsure what would make him angry, Vasma had stayed mostly silent. Gentleman didn't reply, he was too busy snagging the thin wrist of a street urchin who, seconds ago, had been reaching into his robes. She blinked, the boy was thin, short and human. He looked hungry and tired. His dirty hand was still gripped around the little blue doll even as the massive hand of Gentleman encircled it. "Oh."

#$#$#

The little street urchin was a little blond slip of a boy with a shocking blue eyes that stared boldly up at him. Dirt was smudged across his face and his clothes were ragged. 

"Boy, you would be wise to keep your hands within your own pockets." The boy didn't rely but shuffled as far away from him as he could manage. His hand was still wrapped around the little doll but Vader was not fooled. With a sharp tug he pulled the boy to his side and knelt down. 

"Hey! Stop!" The boy cried,trying to pull himself away even as the Sith began rifling through his pockets and produced three of his pieces of jewelry. "Hey! I had those before I even saw you!"'

"Of course, boy." Vader agree easily, pushing the boy down and producing another gold and silver bracelet. "There is every reason for you to have my possessions in your pockets."

The boy pouted, looking away, "I stole those fair and square," his voice held a definite whine. "Give them back."

"You may earn one of this, boy," Vader offered, "If you can lead me somewhere." The boy bite his lip, greed obvious in his blue eyes. The kyber dust cast into the bracelet was too much for a latent force sensitive to ignore. He knew that the boy would do everything to get it. It called to him, it pulled him toward itself and Vader knew the second the boy had touched his jewelry that the boy was his.

"What do you want?" The distrust gaze his something brilliant and Vader wondered if this was how Qui Gon had felt when he'd looked upon the waifishly thin Anakin Skywalker in that Tatooine junk shop. They boy in front of him was a creature like none other. 

He would have him.

#$#43 

Gentleman was freaking him out. Luke pulled at the iron grip on his wrist and dimly noted that his hand was a prosthetic. He had only half expected to get caught but he'd expected that he'd he have to make the man notice him. It was almost freakish that Gentleman had just known that Luke was there. He couldn't see any eyes but Luke knew that an intense, possessive gaze was upon him. 

The bracelet was humming at him. All of the Gentleman's trinkets were humming at him. Pulling him toward them and pushing him away. Luke wondered if he ought to just mug the man and be done with it. He glanced at the twi'lek and bite his lip. 

He was a little freaked out. He could hear Doora in his ear telling him to keep calm and tell her if he wanted her to shoot the man. 

"Well? What do you want?"

"If you know the streets of Nar Shadda better than anyone else then it stand you know the gossip." Gentleman's voice was soft and deep with a round accent that both drew Luke in and repulsed him. 

"Yeah," he shuffled away, this time no acting in his discomfort. "So what?"

"Then I need information on someone named Gohan." Luke did not have the time to think of not revealing his aqaintence with the alien. He got the uncomfortable sensation that it didn't matter if he had tried to hide it or not. "You know her?"

 

"No." He snapped, desperatly thinking of a way to regain control of the conversation. 

"Do not like to me, street urchin." Gentleman waved an imperious finger in his face, "Remember that if was you who tried to lift something from my person."

"So what?"Doora offered to snipe the man again but Luke's extra sense was all but screaming that something was about to go down.

"Then I will offer this bracelet," he dangled the item in front of Luke's eyes, swaying it back and forth, "For your information."

Luke bit his lip again, torn between the wyrm in his chest telling him to take the offer and the common sense and curses that Doora was spewing at him told him to keep his mouth shut. 

"It is no issue," Gentleman's voice turned softer and Luke felt his gaze unfocus while the sparkling jewelry dangled in front of him. It sang and he felt a deep longing in his chest. "All I have are a few questions. Simple, you can answer them with little trouble, even if you do not know Gohan well."

"I," Luke licked his lips and struggled to give the man an answer. His friend and confidant would be impossible danger if Luke even breathed an idea of what he knew. He could condemn the blue alien to a life of complete misery with a word. Her life and skills were invaluable but...Luke watched the bracelet slid about. He didn't realize he was reaching up to grab it until a bright blue blaster bolt splattered to the ground at his feet.

"LUKE!" Doora shrieked in his ear. His mind cleared and Luke was halfway down the the closest alley before he fully realized it. "WHAT THE HELL?"

"I don't know!" He cried, turning about to see the gigantic form of Gentleman sprinting after him, "I don't know! Luke slid to a half-stop just in front of a garbage chute and thought nothing of throwing himself in. Except that the huge hand that had been carefully not crushing his wrist, was now seizing his collar. 

"I think not!" The man thundered and Luke writhed in his grasp, furious and terrffied in equal parts. 

"Get me out of here!" He cried, wrenching at the grip on his shirt. Doora, ever vigilant Doora, obliged. Blasterfire peppered the alley and forced Gentleman to release his grip on Luke. With the robed man sufficiently distracted, Luke reversed directions and dove into the oncoming barrage of fire. Knowing the Doora would cover him, Luke headed for a main street and sprinted through the crowds of shoppers and night shift workers who had just gotten off. 

"KRIFF!" Doora shouted again his ear and he winced. The sound of blaster fire echoed through their earpieces. "This guys got snipers of his own!"

"Get out of there!" Luke shouted and yelped when a identically robed human woman dove out of a back alley to tackle him. Only his superhuman reflexes kept him from getting crushed under her impressive girth. "I've got tails too!"

#$#4

"The sniper's on the run, sir!" Agent Kallus' voice was breathless as he ran across the connected rooftops of Nar Shadda. "Heading toward the North east quadrant!"

"Did you get an ID?" Someone shouted down the shared comm link just as the crunching sound of breaking metal echoed through the line. 

"Not yet." Kallus veered after the short figure in dark brown clothes and a black veil over their face. He couldn't see anything from this angle except their back which seemed to be just far enough ahead of him that it didn't matter. "Brekus, Lojn, Tove, head them off. Take the speeder bikes to the secondary roads and make sure that they don't get past you. You're looking for a short figure, one and 3/4 a meter tall. Dark brown clothes, loose with a black veil over their face! Possibly human, possibly alien."

"Yes, sir!" The three agents replied and leaped to their assigned tasks. Kallus made a final hurdle onto a sloping rooftop. He nearly stumbled, slipping downward until his feet caught the dirt on the roof to stop his fall. His bio-rifle banged uncomfortably around his face and Kallus made a face.

Un-holstering his blaster, Kallus watched for the running sniper. After a second his eyes caught the figure leaping onto a holo-net cable strung between two houses. Taking careful aim, Kallus shot the cable in two and smirked when an astonished screech echoed back to him. The fall would have taken them into the street below into the view of his agents. 

"The target is possibly wounded," Kallus said, the humming of the agent speeder bikes arriving. 

"There's no one down here sir. Brekus said carefully as Kallus made his way across the last few rooftops to the street. "What?" Down in the busy streets where crowds of people, pushing about and ignoring the chaos above them. Kallus could not see the distinctively dressed figure of the shooter. If they had had a disguise with them then they would be lost in the crowd and then into the galaxy at large. 

 

"The boy is escaping!" Lord Vader's thunderous voice galvanized them into action, "We need one or the other! Leave the shooter if you must but find one of them."

"Aye, sir!" Kallus glowered bitterly at the seething crowd of criminals not knowing that his target was a sitting in the dirt beneath the lip of the roof he stood on, dressed as a beggar with a strip of cloth just sheer enough to see with covering her eyes. 

#$#$#

Vader knew that if he lost sight of the boy then it would be over. They had already lost the sniper ( an unpleasant surprise but not one he hadn't anticipated,) and if they lost the blond then all of their work would be ruined. As it was, the boy was brilliant at urban evasion. He was using every trick, dirty and clean, to get away from him. Leaping fences and pushing over bins and fruits stalls to get in Vader's way. 

If he was any lesser of a warrior then the boy would have succeeded. Except that Vader was a Sith and no petty criminal would evade him. Even a criminal that seemed to be a latent force sensitive. 

"The sniper escaped us, Sir." Kallus reported and Vader growled his irritation. Still, the Empire had no jurisdiction here on Nar Shadda, He couldn't close down the spaceports and there were no friends here that his team could rely on for help. 

"The boy is short with blond hair and blue eyes," Someone on the comm cursed as an alien screeching echoed down the line. 

"DON'T DRIVE LIKE A CRAZY PERSON!" They shrieked in frustration and Vader could almost see the humor in the situation. 

"I've got him in my sights!" Vader tentatively identified the voice as belonging to the team medic, "Oh! Not anymore!" Vader slid around the corner, robes billowing, to find his agent pointing toward the left with a frantic expression. 

"He went eighty feet and turned right!" He barely spared the woman a nod and took off, pulling on the force to push him faster.

"Uh..is this a bad time?" Another voice the cacophony echoing around the comm line, "Because a memo just came in from the Imperial Center." The Sith slid to a halt out a bustling market place. He tossed out a net of force power and dragged it through the crowed, waiting for a ping to identify his runner. 

"What is it, Agent?" He demanded, he would not have contacted the Sith if it wasn't important.

"The Emperor..uh...." A nervous swallow and then the communications expert sighed, "demands you make contact with him."

"I am occupied."

"I know, milord but he says if you're not talking to him in the next ten minutes then.......I don't want to say what he said but basically there'll be big trouble." The net pinged back a negative and Vader uttered a stream of ugly curses that would have made Watto blush. There was an echoing silence in his helmet that had been there in almost a month and he realized he'd just said it for all his agents to hear. Deciding to ignore his slip, he spoke, "Agent Tove, how fast can you get to me to the ship?"

"Following the laws here it would take twenty minutes." the buzzing of a low flying speeder broke his concentration on the net and Vader let it die down. 

"And not following any?" The speeder scattered the crowds around him as it descended onto the street. Vader mounted behind the slender ISB agent. 

"Six minutes." 

"Keep up the search," he ordered as the partially unstable agent send them careening around traffic, "If any ship blasts off in the next ten minutes then follow them. Find them and someone pick up Vasma."

"Aye, sir." With a growl he switched off his comm lines and watched the murky, rusted form the of spaceport they were parked at come into view. 

#$#$#

Luke slumped into a wall and groaned. 

"Luke, I am going to kill you." 

"You get dibs before Gohan," He admitted, trying to push away the uncomfortable buzzing in his head. "What happened?" 

"I'm not sure." Luke rubbed hand down his face as he watched a ship take off with suspicious speed from a nearby hanger. A minute later another ship followed and they both vanished into the atmosphere. "Doora, are you alright?"

"Yeah but I think I pulled something in my ankle."

"I'll look at it when we meet up."

"When are we going to meet back up?"

"Two days to make them think we've already left." Luke sank to the ground, "And we'll have to take a few more dozen hyperspace jumps."

"You should get your disguise on," Doora said, still sounding furious, "And hurry because Gentleman's agents know what you look like now."

"Got it."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys like this because I've got some serious plans for this.


	4. WHAT?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Soup and bread for dinner. Aphra more concerned with what she wants than helping people. Kallus finally gets a chance to relax.

The beginning of the search for the thieves had started off simply. Agent Kallus found the orders in his mail the morning after the news broke and reported, as ordered, to ISB headquarters on Naboo. He found a crew already assembling. Some he knew from past experiences and some he knew by reputation, good and bad. There were some of the best mavericks, lunatics and skilled pseudo criminals that only allowed the ISB to tell them what to do. Their skills were varied and impressive and Kallus, as good as he was, was honestly intimidated. 

It’s hard to be strong and impressive when you’re sitting on a small metal chair next to a woman who went undercover in a fighting ring on Imperial Center. Her huge, muscular body dotted with scars from blades and burns, had made Kallus feel practically infantile. There were three ace pilots, a splicer that had actually been a criminal, and a few infiltration specialists that usually worked alone. A few detectives and investigators that had been poached from various planets were also in attendance. Kallus might have been the highest ranking but in terms of experience he was light years behind most of them. 

There was a moment of absolute silence when Darth Vader marched through the doors and announced that he would be taking lead in the next mission and if they were unsure if they could handle the stress then they ought to leave. Only two people left and the rest stayed.

It was an experience in many ways to be stuck in close quarters with Darth Vader and more people who were only partly less intimidating then he. Kallus learned more about criminal investigations in the last few weeks than he’d ever learned at the academy. He knew more about his team and his lord than he’d expected to. Plus, he was exposed to the whole spectrum of Vader emotions. So he was concerned when the Emperor decided to interrupt their mission to talk to Lord Vader. There were a million possible outcomes that could lead to any number to incidents. So far they hadn’t had anyone die under Vader’s temper and that was something Kallus wanted to keep. 

“Is he here?” Former Corellian Security Homicide DetectiveTolvo, leaned around Kallus and peered into the ship. “I don’t hear him.”

“I don’t know,” Agent Kallus inched is way up the boarding ramp and glanced at Agent Tove, “Have you seen him?”

“No,” Tove shook his head, “He told me to wait out here. He took himself off comms and sort of….didn’t reappear. I haven’t heard anything and there’s been no sign of him.”

“I see,” Kallus rubbed at his growing beard and wondered if he ought to go in. 

“I hope he’s okay,” the diminutive agent from the wilds of Chrisophsis peered around Kallus’s shoulder and into the dark entrance of the ship. “Oh…does anyone smell something?”

“I?” Kallus didn’t bother telling the agent to stop hiding behind him, “Yes? Tove….do you smell bread.” 

“I do?” Tove moved toward the ship and shrugged, “Look at it this way, either this turns into one of those gruesome fairytales from Axxila or we get bread and an explanation.”

“How long have you been waiting out here?”

“Eight hours. I think I fell asleep at some point.”

“Hello,” the agents started a bit when Vasma’s voice echoed down the boarding ramp, “Agents.”

“Vasma,” Kallus leapt the last few steps up the ramp and paused right in front of her, “When did you get back?”

“I walked,” She said, blinking at him, “Did the search not go well?” Kallus grimaced.

“No…it didn’t.” Eight fruitless hours of searching, overturning ever rock on the planet and watching every ship that took off. Nothing. The blond thief and his alien sniper were gone. “Is……?”

“He’s in,” Vasma nodded, “in the lounge, waiting. There is food waiting for you.”

“I see,” Kallus again wondered what would become of them. This was the first time they had failed as a team. “Um.” 

“He told me to tell you all that he would brief you as a team when everyone has eaten.”

“That’s sound promising,” Agent Tove whispered as they moved up the ramp and into the ship. There was food waiting. A thick corellian stew that excited the biggest agent there plus a good number of rolls and breads all rolled out and steaming onto a table. Kallus considered taking a shower before realizing just how ravenous he was. 

Agents trickled back to the ship, each nervous and exhausted. Most of them feel about the food like ravenous animals which Kallus could relate to. It was a pleasure to watch the concern and moral terror melt away when they realized they weren’t going to die right then and were instead threated to a hearty meal. 

“Agents,” The slowly cheering conversation died away the second that Lord Vader’s respirator echoed into the cramped dining space. “There has been a change…..we will be proceeding to Naboo as soon as possible.” Kallus glanced at the best pilot not Vader, they were slumped against the bulkhead, only barely awake. “That is all.” Lord Vader paused and Kallus wanted to facepalm when Agent Banaka blurted.

“Does this mean we’re abandoning the investigation?” She looked shocked and Tove sputtered into his soup. 

“It does,” Vader sounded as deeply offended as someone could with a voice modulator.

“WHAT!?” Agent Banaka upended her empty bowl, “But we….we just had a huge break!”

“I am well aware of what conspired today,” The room temperature dropped dangerously and the hot shot agent sat down, a mutinous expression on her face. “This is from order of the Emperor….who we cannot disobey. When you are finished prepare the ship for take-off.” 

“Aye,” Agent Kallus slunk against the wall and sighed when Vader vanished from the door. No one said anything for a while. 

“Soo……is anyone else really curious about what happened?”

“I’m pretty sure that goes without saying.” 

#$#$#

 

“Well you’re an idiot.” Gohan rubbed her forehead and glowered at the holo-article about Senator Taa vanishing. “What made you think that that wouldn’t end badly?”

“I don’t know,” Luke looked the very image of contrite pre-teen, miserable and confused. “I really don’t know. It was weird. I couldn’t think right and….I don’t know.” He buried his face in his hands with a sigh. “How bad is it?”

“Not bad all things considered.” Gohan patted him on the head. A little more firmly than she would have before but Luke didn’t protest. “From what I can see Gentleman and his crew vanished.” 

“What?” Luke perked back up. The blue skinned alien across from didn’t answer for a minute.

“Yeah, his troops were combing the city and they sort of left.”

“Why would they do that?”

“I have no idea but they did. No trace of them or the twi’lek they were with. What’s odd is that all of the troops Gentleman had with him were human….which is odd for a criminal.”

“The twi’lek?”

“Recently freed slave…won off Senator Taa right after we cleaned him out.” Luke half smiled at the memory of waltzing out the front door with Taa’s treasures. “So….he’s gone missing and so has Gentleman. I don’t think the two are related. Are you sure that he didn’t get anything from you?”

“Other than what I looked like and the fact that we were connected.” 

“You and Gentleman?”

“No….you and me. He knows that I’m connected to you.” 

“Oh.” Gohan rubbed at her forehead again, “I’m not going to lie, I thought you said you and Gentleman were connected. It was weird.”

“Well…it felt like we were. I don’t know how to tell you. It was like….something told me that he was important. Like I shouldn’t have run away. I don’t know,” Luke rubbed a hand down his face and peered up at the older being. “I’m sorry Gohan.” 

“You’re lucky that Doora was standing guard,” Gohan’s voice hardened a bit. Luke cringed. “You need to go clear your head. Go on a walk, think. Go to the grotto you like so much. Do some thinking.”

“Okay.” Luke nodded and glanced over to Aphra as she pushed her way in. 

“I’ve got us a new target!” Aphra spared him a wink before showing off the image of a severe woman with dark hair. “This is Governor Pryce of Lothal , she’s a dick. I think that if we’re going to be doing some crusading then can we do it on a planet with interesting weapons.”

“There’s nothing interesting on Lothal,” Gohan and Luke said at the same time. “It’s a rock.”

“A rock with a suspected weapons cache on it. Rumor has it that Pryce like her killing toys and stuff. She’s got a bunch of it.”

“You want to rob her?”

“Rob her, destroy her life, ruin her credit, egg her speeder. I don’t care what we do as long as I get those toys.”

“Those toys are probably priceless,” Gohan accepted the file. “Oh, she is a piece of work. Luke, do you think you could handle a job so soon to this one?”

“What about Gentleman?”

“Until he resurfaces there’s not much we can do. Can you infiltrate a cadet academy?” 

“I could,” He sighed, thinking about the many rules and stiff uniforms and all the shouting he’d have to endure. “What’s up?”

“I’m not sure yet,” Gohan flashed him a thumbs up, “I’ll call you back when we’ve got a solid plan. Go clear your head.” 

“Got it.” Luke trudged out, “Someone tell Doora I’ve ritually thrown myself out a window.”

“Sure thing!”   
#$#$#$#

Naboo was nice. Kallus thought a bit pathetically. It was hot and uncomfortable in his full ISB uniform. He and Lord Vader were waiting in the thorn room for the Queen to make an appearance. 

Vader had removed his robes and it was a little jarring to see the man not draped in robes and jewelry.

Kallus tugged at his collar and suppressed a sigh. It was the middle of a summer night and the queen was being roused from her bed. No one told Vader that the Queen of a planet would not be woken.

“Lord Vader.” The woman emerged from a distant corner of the too large throne room. Kallus knew that Naboo queens were usually on the young side but this was ridiculous. She couldn’t have been older than 15! “This is an unusual hour to be calling.”

“Indeed,” Vader didn’t move but Kallus offered a full-court bow. The teenager gifted him with a bland smile. “I have need of your time.”

“If it would.”

“A private word.” Kallus stifled a yawn and hoped that his wouldn’t take a long time.

“Very well.” 

“First, I request that you allow my investigation team to use the next week for leave on Naboo. You have my word that none will cause trouble.”

“My lord,” Kallus forced himself to not squirm under the firm stare the Queen directed at him. “This is unusual.”

“They will not be quartered in your homes,” Vader assured her.

“Very well, your troops may have a weeks worth of leave in Theed and on Naboo.”

“I must also request that she,” Vader gestured to a silent Vasma. The twi’lek was gaping, unabashed, at the queen. She had been arrested by the beauty of the planet since they’d landed. “Be given medical aide from the palace med-center.”

“Why? If I may ask?”

There was a heartbeat pause that gave Kallus the opportunity to watched how the youthful Queen tensed, as if ready to run.

“She has come a long way from home.” Vader said finally. The Queen’s eyes widened a fraction in total shock before the emotion vanished. 

“We will welcome all travelers home,” The Queen said, she turned to a handmaiden, “Please escort the madam to the med-center.”

When Vasma, awed and starstruck, was gone, Vader finally turned to Kallus. He stiffened instinctively despite the fact that the man had actually walked in on him shaving and hadn’t bothered to leave. Kallus had been forced to hold a conversation on the best tactic to ensnare a seat at a Sabacc game while half-naked and covered in shaving cream. Despite this, Vader was still totally terrifying.

“Inform the agents they may have a week of leave. If there is any trouble that stems from them the consequences will be severe.”

“Yes, Lord Vader.” Kallus saluted the Sith, bowed to the Queen and marched out of the room. It had been a long while since he’d relaxed. As the heavy door shut behind him he heard Vader intone. 

“Now, to business.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It'll pick up more and you'll discover what Palpatine told Vader later.


	5. Imperials

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Apidala and Vader talk. A few things are reveled and someone gets nosy..

“There are plans in motion, your majesty.” Queen Apindala paused briefly as Vader lead her though the palace gardens. “Many of them involve you and many more involve me which is why I am here to offer you an escape.”

“An escape, Lord Vader?” The teenager did stop, and directed her gaze to the sculpture in the center of the garden. “Why would I need an escape?”

“The Emperor has not remained complacent in his throne. He has taken a measure against me that I had not previously calculated for.” 

“My lord.”

“He is forcing me to marry,” Vader admitted when the soulful eyes of the young queen turned on him with the unasked question. “It is clear that the Emperor had some plan in motion that would destroy all that we have worked to build.”

“Marriage?” She blinked rapidly, raising a painted hand to her lips, “What?”

“I offer you an escape now, your majesty. To remove your agents from Tatooine, Ryloth and the other planets you have moved people to. All records will be burnt and destroyed and operations will cease.”

“My lord, if we do as you are proposing then.”

“I am aware,” Vader tucked his thumbs into his belt, tilting his helmet away from the distressed queen. 

“What will you do with Vasma?”

“She will remain with me for her own safety. I cannot destroy the record of the ISB so soon after an operation. It will seem suspicious.”

“The galaxy will believe that you have taken a slave, my lord. Surely the Emperor would suspect this.”

“No,” He turned his blank mask toward the queen again, “I have ensured that her presence will not arouse suspicion. 

“I will not allow our operations to stop, Lord Vader.” Apindala rallied quickly, speaking firmly. “There are too many involved already, too much money into these works. You may publicly disconnect yourself from Naboo and use this appearance here as an excuse to say a final farewell to Amidala but I will not accept your offer.”

“You are foolish, your majesty,” Vader said quietly, sounded infinitely weary.

“There are too many people who need your help, Lord Vader. What will I do without these operations? Sit quietly and ‘rule’ a planet? Already hundreds have been helped and raised from their shackles and as more and more are educated and spirited away the movement grows. The slaves of the outer rim need us. We joined our forces two years ago for this express purpose and to abandon it now would be foolish.”

“The Emperor may suspect.” 

“He may but then again he may not. You said yourself that he delights in your pain.” Very carefully Apindala set a hand on Vader’s forearm, staring beseechingly up at him. Unaware of the memory this moved in the Sith. “If this is only an opportunity to cause you pain then it might not be the discovery you fear.” 

“If this is discovered you will be summarily executed and your entire planet will used as an example, the retribution will be a bloodbath of every Nubian child.”

Queen Apindala finally pulled away and tucked her hands out of sight. Only because Vader had seen Amidala in her senatorial robes and dress so often did he now notice that the woman was trembling. 

“We will pause but we will not stop,” Apindala promised quietly. “Feel the waters and see which way the tide is pulling us and then we will resume.”

“Queen.”

“When you came to me and proposed this plan what did you tell me?” He sighed, a crackling from his respirator, “My lord, you gave only a single line to gain my agreement...surely you remember what you said to me.” 

“I do,” there was a relative silence as the Sith contemplated her. “The problem with the galaxy is that no one tries to help anyone else.”

“And it that something that we should abandon?”

“You have made your point, your majesty.”

“My lord, I thank you for you generous offer but for better or for worse I have taken an oath and I will honor it I would be honored if you would give me and the citizens of Naboo the opportunity.”

“The opportunity is yours, Queen Apindala, so long as you know what could happen.” 

“I understand,” her heavily adorned head bowed as much as her headdress would allow. “Please, tell me what you intend to do about this marriage that the Emperor is commanding.”

“There are few details that he gave even to me.”

“So he has not arranged a marriage.” 

“I believe he attempted to,” Vader held out a hand. Queen Apindala accepted as he led her into a secluded section of the garden that few people ventured. “Though even the most furiously dedicated matchmaker would never allow their daughter to be married to such a beast as myself.”

“I do not find you beastly, my lord.” Apindala gathered her skirts and moved up the steps. 

“Young Queen, you see the galaxy with earnest eyes and a hopeful mind. Not all can be as you desire it to be.”

Apindala chose to ignore him as they stepped under the final gate of the uncharacteristically stern stone mausoleum that served as the final resting place for Queen Amidala. 

“What will you do?”

“I will do as my master commands and I will find a wife.” They both stopped beneath the final arch, a faint glimpse of the glass coffin beyond the shadows. 

“I will see you in the morning, my lord.” Apindala released Vader’s hand and moved back toward the palace. “One question, though.” He stopped moving and waited. “This team you have with you, the ISB agents….what do you intend?”

“They will be my loyal agents when this is through. I have every intention of using them to complete our mission.”

“There is no guarantee that they will agree.”

“They will have no other choice.” Vader said with great finality and strode into the tomb.

#$#$#$#

Padme didn’t look any different than she had at her funeral. Still encased in glass and an image of timeless beauty and utter perfection, there was nothing wrong with her she looked as she ought to wake up any minute and begin talking. 

He stopped a few feet away from the transparent coffin, unsure and ashamed. Aside from his respirator there were few noises, a gentle hush of water falling and the nightly movements of nocturnal creatures. With nothing else to hide his words they carried far.

“I have failed my angel. More than anyone might have ever imagined….except perhaps Windu.” He stepped closer and stared his own faint reflection. “I would apologize if it weren’t an exercise in futility and that any crimes that I have committed are not forgivable and I must…” his voice trailed off and he removed is gaze from the woman. “I must…there are none who would replace you in my heart. None whose life would inspire me so much and you are the brightest star in this galaxy to eve burn. A singular angel among the monster and animals that crawl, belly to the ground and though I am nothing more than a charred corpse I find myself wishing that I had…” Again his voice failed him and the man switched tracks. “Someone stole a ship of mine from my living room.” He continued finding the inconsequence words to use, telling everything and nothing. “It was an impressive heist. The thieves only stole the ship to take down one of the criminal lords of the underworld and it was a perfectly executed plan. I have taken to chasing them and they have proven…difficult to find. There is a suspect that you would find of interest. The young boy that I nearly apprehended on Nar Shadda. He…he was….” The sun slowly began to rise as he spoke, telling the most insignificant details to the tomb’s permanent occupant.

#$#$#

“Lord Vader is up to something.” 

“Excuse me?” Kallus stopped just moments from taking his drink, staring through the crystal clear glass at his co-worker. 

“Vader is up to something,” Her smile was shifty and eyes had the excited sort of sheen that meant she was seconds away from revealing her criminology genius. “Sir, I promise you he is up to something. I’ve been profiling him during the case and here’s the thing. I’m getting contradictory feedback.”

“And this means what exactly?”

“He’s up to something. Nothing he’s done in the last few months matches his profile. The first one, all of it is changing and when I compare the results with it shows….well it shows that he’s up to something.”

“How?”

“Like I just said, he’s contradicting his file and that means he’s up to something.”

“Agent,” Kallus leaned across the table, “Lord Vader is not up to something. What could he possibly have done in the last few months that we haven’t seen?”

“It does matter if we saw it or not, he’s done something. Think about it…he went shopping for us. How Vader-like is that really? And the work on the ship, the advice on our work and all of the tiny details. He doesn’t yell at us, he hasn’t killed anyone and it’s odd….he’s almost…mellow.”

“He blistered Agent Miko for messing up the microphone recordings.”

“I know,” the woman’s eyes brightened, “A dressing down is one thing but he didn’t kill him did he? Miko is alive and well. What happens usually?”

“He kills them…?” Kallus caught the astonished expression on a passing waiter. “Agent, do you think that you might be reading too much into this?”

“Sir,” She shifted closer and passed him a datapad, “I have been profiling people for twenty years now. I am very good at my job and I’m telling you that what he’s doing is creating loyalty. Four months ago would you have gotten in a dress to try and snag the confession from an ex-pimp?”

“The thought would not have even occurred to me,” Kallus said seriously.

“And you did it. Would you have considered doing anything that we’ve been asked to do in the last few weeks? No, none of us would have done this. We wouldn’t have grown so comfortable with him right next to us that we could do something like this.” The agent passed him a flimsiplast image that almost looked falsified-the subject was too bizarre. 

“Hmmm,” Kallus rubbed his scruffy sideburns and nodded in agreement. Vader, half in and half out his disguise, was sitting in the middle of a crowd. The agents around him were dressed in various sleepwear. One had her hair in ancient curlers while another was pointing a soggy toothbrush at the person directly across from him. It was a relaxed scene all things considered but to someone who hadn’t spent three months in close quarters with the Sith it would probably blow their mind. 

“This would never happen unless he wanted it. I think he’s foster loyalty among this direct team of misfits, mavericks and lunatics for some plan of his. It fits his profile and at the same time contradicts it. Don’t you think his behavior has been odd?”

“What is he doing on Naboo, then?” Kallus leaned even closer, “What is here that he wants. It’s the Emperor’s home world and the Queen has nothing…” He paused, thinking about the scene in the throne room. “How big is this ‘up to something’ do you think?”

“I’m not sure,” The woman pursed her lips, tucking the flimsi away before the waiter could catch sight of it. “But it’s big.”

“But what do you think he wants on Naboo?”

#$#$#$#

“He’s saying goodbye, Sabe.” The handmaiden lifted the headpiece of the younger woman and nodded. “That’s why he is here. He is,” The Queen lifted her hand, now clear of make-up, to her face. “He is being ordered to marry.”

“Lord Vader…marry?” Sabe, former handmaiden to Queen Padme Amidala, paused in her motions, staring into the mirror blankly. Apindala met her gaze.

“That is why he is here. To say a final farewell to.”

“Padme,” Sabe gingerly set the head piece down, waving for the others to gather close,” He cannot say goodbye to her. He married her and in propriety he cannot marry anyone else.”

“Sabe,” Apindala set a hand on her shoulder, pulling her down to kneel at her side, “Lord Vader is not bound by the laws of the Naboo government. It is not our place to judge him for the actions of his master.” 

“My lady, you understand more than anyone that if he renounces.”

“I do not think Lord Vader is renouncing Amidala,” Apindala said a little sharply, catching her friend’s attention despite her predicament. “I believe that even though this is against his will and no doubt the Emperor will only increase the suffering…allowing himself to complete grieving for Queen Amidala may be for the best.”

“Everything Vader has done in the last few years was in her memory,” A handmaiden spoke up, “If he allows himself to…leave her memory then.”

“I do not believe that the Queen will ever leave his memory, my friends,” the teenager stood, catching their attention, “However, perhaps it is time that he….the Lord Vader becomes….new. We have all been witness to his obsessive and possessive behavior and we must help him in his new assignment. For the next few months we must allow our work to come to a temporary halt.” They all nodded, “Lord Vader is unsure if the Emperor knows about our shared operations and until his attention and scrutiny is lifted from our companion we will do as asked.”

There was a grumbling agreement and Apindala sat back down to let her friends remove her make-up and costume. 

$%$%$%

He was reluctant to leave the tomb. Vader paused beneath the stone archway, staring at the mural behind the coffin. Leaving her behind would be nothing more than agony, the final vestiges of his former life and no doubt the Emperor was enjoying his pain. Palpatine knew what suffering he was living through and had made plans to worsen it. 

Vader would not abandon the memory or his love for his wife. Nothing would replace her, she was too sublime and brilliant to be compared to anyone he might have soon. He would probably never come to terms with his self-loathing and depression over the circumstances over her death-it was probably time to stop allowing those emotions to rule him. For them to dominate his mindset he would not be prepared to do what he needed. Queen Apindala needed him, the galaxy needed him and it was time to do what he had always promised to do.

Unwilling and unsure former Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker glanced at the corpse of his beloved wife and turned to leave for the last time. 

$#$#$#

“Well I think it’s a breakthrough.” Agent Kallus and Banaka turned when they heard the familiar hissing of Vader’s respirator.

“What is a breakthrough?” He asked, ignoring Banaka’s curious frown and the sudden suspicion on Kallus’ eyes. 

“My lord, our agents at one of the cadet academies just turned some paperwork in that got caught in one of our nets…I think it should interest you and some of the work I did…”

“Are you not on leave, Agent Banaka?” Vader interrupted, taking the datapad as the woman shrugged. 

“This is how I relax.”

Vader and Kallus chose not to comment. “Where does this information lead you to believe our next breakthrough is?” 

“My lord,” Her expression was gleeful, “We need to head to Lothal next.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise LUke and VAder meet again in the next chapter. If I''ve made more mistakes it's because I broke a hand and am having trouble typing. Also, please don't comment on the queen's name or tell me I got it wrong. I don't care.


	6. Proposal.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Obi Wan makes an appearance. Human space surgeons are totally a thing and the Emperor is a great big bag of dicks.

“You have done more research on a case that we have already been ordered to abandon?” Vader’s flat tone executed the agent's excitement on the spot. She visibly wilted.

“Yes, Lord Vader but this lead is incredibly promising. We have pinpointed the pick pocket to Lothal. If he makes Lothal his home or even is this is where he operates out of o if the boy is running a new gig! The pickpocket is the key to ringleader and we have positively identified him on Lothal.”

“Ordered by the Emperor himself, Agent.” Vader crossed his arms. Kallus wondered if he’d break the record making streak he’d managed so far. “To disobey the Emperor is treason.”

Still, as obviously depressed as the agents was, there was a defiant edge of madness and curiosity that gleamed in her eyes. “Yes, milord.”

“We will speak of your indiscretion later. Take your leave before I change my mind.”

“Aye,” her salute lacked any luster but Kallus and Vader chose to ignore it. When the agent had let herself out of the ship Vader turned to the ISB agent. 

“Vasma will not be returning to the Imperial Center. Once leave is over have the agents reassigned to their original posts.”

“Original posts?” It wasn’t often that Kallus was at a loss. At that moment he felt as if the world had been yanked out from underneath him. “Sir, the agents….the transitions back to their original posts would be…”

“It is the best place for them.” Kallus squinted at the man, wondering what the Sith was thinking. There was no doubt that the assembled agents of the case had been become loyal to Vader and each other. Returning them to their original posts would be a complete waste of talent and education. None of them would be able to return, what it would seem to them, a complete mundane existence. 

“Save for a few. Their posts will be chosen by myself.” 

“As you wish, Lord Vader.” If this meant that he was heading back to hunt dissenters then Kallus was going to miserable.

“I will be leaving the crew here on Naboo.” Vader continued. “At the end of the week new orders will be issued.” 

“Aye, milord.” So this was what was going to happen. Their crew would be disbanded. A crew they had worked hard to integrate and train. Almost four months packed in close quarters and then it was being ripped away. He ought to have expected but it still stung to be used so callously. Kallus wondered if Vader had actually been different or if the glimpses of humanity were only lies.

“You have served the Empire well but all must obey the Emperor.” Kallus nodded. Without another word Darth Vader whirled about and left. Agent Kallus grimaced, thinking of the complaints he would have to field for returning the agents to their original posts. They would not be happy in the slightest. He opened the file and blinked a bit. 

Vader had stated that few would be re-assigned and this…Kallus’ mouth twisted into a smirk. Agent Tove and Kallus on Lothal. A few had been attached directly to Vader’s personal aides and his semi-official household. Some more were stationed in places that an agent of Vader, no matter unofficial, would probably benefit the Sith. 

Some form of politics was on this page and Kallus was curious as to what it was.

#$#$#$ 

“My master.”

“Lord Vader, have you called to report you have successfully found a wife?”

“No, master.” Vader paused, “I have come to report the cession of the investigation into the stolen ship.”

“Indeed? Why would these be a matter of consequence to me?” The giant holo-gram floating above the chamber turned it’s sneer on the kneeling acolyte. “You have one mission now, my apprentice.” 

“My master, it is conceivable that no one shall accept my proposal.”

“Who would wish to wed a beast?” The Emperor snorted, yellow eyes mocking. “You will do as I command and with haste. You have until the 13th Empire Day. We will make an announcement then.”

Empire Day was in a week. Frustrated, Vader finally lifted his head. 

“Master, such a task….it is unlike that of the ancient Sith traditions.”

“Traditions are only to be followed if they are convenient, my brutish apprentice. The ancient traditions would not have lead us to our great victory over the Jedi.”

“No, my master.” 

“To become a Sith Master,” The grandfatherly tone that Vader had learned not to trust, whispered over his helmet and cloak. “You must pass all tests set forth by your master. This will be part of your training, Lord Vader.”

No it wouldn’t be. It wasn’t to help him master the darkness but this fact was something that no longer bothered Lord Vader. This was an episode of entertainment for the Emperor so he could mock the slavish attention that the former Jedi lavished upon him all for the smallest amount of validation. 

Never before had Vader been so sure of his betrayal of Emperor Palpatine. 

“Yes, my master.” 

“It is conceivable that his marriage might be more successful than your last one, my apprentice. So long as she does not draw your ire.” A sick bout of cackling echoed around the chamber. Leather creaked as Vader clenched a fist tight. “There is no concern that there would be any child for you to destroy in your anger.” 

He was enjoying this. The Emperor was enjoying his pain. Vader bowed his head, gritting his teeth despite the agony. 

“You will find a wife. I have foreseen it, my apprentice.” 

 

“Yes, my master.” The echoing image of Padme made his useless tear ducts burn with need. When the holo connection cut a moment late it took two minutes for the Sith to stand. He knew the consequences of failure. 

#$#$#$

Obi Wan Kenobi had not had an easy thirteen years. The past decade had been one nightmarish hell after another. Actually, the last two or three decades had been hellish. The Jedi rubbed his head, glancing at the label on the brown bottle in his hand.

There was no way that this was Corellian ale. If it was it had to be some cheap knock off that no decent Corellian would drink.

“Hey there.” Kenobi squinted from his bottle to the sentient across the counter. “Your search no going well, Ben?”

“Nope,” He pulled another slug from the drink, slamming it onto the bar counter. “Still nothing, you’d think my nephew just vanished into the ground.” 

“That’s what happens, my friend.” Another brown bottle slid its way down the countertop to stop beside the first one. “For breaking up the fight earlier, that kind of rabble is getting to bold.”

“Of course.” A comfortable, dull haze had settled over his mind. Kenobi felt wonderfully numb. Here in his drunken haze there was no Sith Empire. The Jedi were still the protectors of peace and justice. His padawan was still obedient and polite and he was not searching for said padawan’s missing son. 

“How long has been that you’ve been searching for this kid?”

“Three years.” All of this talking was interfering with his daydreaming. It was so much better to pretend that none of this had ever happened. There hadn’t been hide nor tail of Luke since Obi Wan had removed him from his aunt and uncle. After the initial first weeks that trail of a running, amnesiac Luke had gone cold. Even Obi Wan, with all of his skill and experience, was left behind. 

“Didja ever consider the boy could be dead?” Kenobi glared the slid of his eyelids at the man. “I’m just saying, friend. A 10 year on his own in this galaxy? He could be dead.”

“He’s not dead.” Obi Wan buried his head into his elbow. He didn’t see the pitying glance from the bartender. The man couldn’t know that Obi Wan’s source was something beyond his understanding. The Force told Obi Wan that Luke was alive and no matter how many times he meditated for guidance it never led him to Luke. 

Obi Wan wondered if he ought to consult Master Yoda. After all, his original mission had been to remove Luke from the Larses and spirit him to Dagobah for Jedi training. He had succeeded with the first part but since Luke had run away…..Yoda would be wondering what was keeping him. 

His most obvious mistake had been taking all of Luke’s memories of people. When the boy had woken from the force induced sleep he’d been a blank slate and frightened. Since he could not remember anyone and Kenobi must have been frightening enough for the boy to run off…..he melted into the bar top. 

“You look pathetic.” A deep voice fell across his drunken haze a bit painfully. Squinting he looked up to see the stern features of a woman in an ISB uniform. “Hey, barkeep. You want this thing here?”

“For now. The usual for you agent?”

“Yeah.” Obi Wan thought he ought to run but the thought was hazy and discarded. “Anything new in this corner of the galaxy?”

“Not since you rolled through here last.” The barkeep slid a delicate glass of foaming pink liquid in front of the agent. Kenobi registered the curly straw sticking out of his before he began to drunkenly chuckle. “That’s odd; usually he’s one of those depressed drunks.” 

“Yer,” Kenobi propped his head on his hands, still squinting at the woman. “A regular here. I haven’t seen you.”

“Look, drunk. I’m not here to listen to some boozed up bastard make my evening worse than it’s already been. So you sit back and do your best to drown your sorrows silently and I’ll do my best not to beat the shit out of you and toss you in lock up.” That sobered him up a little. If he was in lock up then he’d be easy pickings for the Sith. He hadn’t survived his long by being foolish. Not necessary cowed but definitely more cautious, he turned away from the agent. “That’s better.” 

“So agent, what’s up? You’re pissier than usual.”

“I just go ordered to drop an investigation.” Obi Wan pricked his ears. “You know how I feel about leaving a job undone.” 

“Yeah, hey. You want some fries? I just got a fresh shipment and that doesn’t fail to cheer anyone up.”

“Sure.” Obi Wan squinted at the woman and focused on his drink again. With a bit of desperation he tossed another inquiry to the force, searching for Luke. It pinged back negative. 

#$#43

 

Across the galaxy, in the semi-privacy in his barracks room, Luke jolted out of bed with cry. His shout and following fall the ground woke his bunkmates. 

“Luke?” Shaking, only barely supporting himself on his hands and knees he didn’t respond to his classmate. “Are you alright?”

“I…” Luke ran a hand through his hair, shakily pushing himself to his feet. “I don’t know?”

“What was that? Is the farmboy up?” The oldest boy in the room peered down at him from his place on the highest bunk. “What’s going on?”

“Luke’s awake.” Someone else whispered.

“Why?”

“I’m sorry,” Luke pushed his hair out of his face. “I’m okay I just had a nightmare.”

“Awwww, the farm boy afraid to be away from home too long?” Luke ignored the sneering. His dream had seemed so real. Like this man was grabbing at him. 

“I’m fine.” He slumped back onto his bunk, pulling the thin blankets over his shoulders. Gohan was usually there to help with his nightmares. She made teas and hot drinks and listened to him when he talked. Her blankets were thick and comfortable and….he missed his crew so much. “Go back to sleep.” Eventually the breathing in the room evened out until Luke was the only one left awake. 

The nightmare always featured the same person. A bearded man with reddish hair that was going gray, a face lined and tired but with eyes that were dangerous, intense. It was the first face he actually remembered. Luke vividly remembered the first time he opened his eyes and met the man. 

Fear was the first emotion Luke remembered. Alone with the man with nothing in his head except fear and loneliness…he had seen, as far as he knew, it made sense that he would run away. Luke had run away and almost every night since he had run he had the nightmares had come back. They always showed him the man, searching for him. 

In the chase the man probably would have caught up with him if not for the timely intervention of Gohan. She’d appeared out of nowhere with a lopsided smile, a proposition and a beckoning hand. Gohan had promised to make him disappear and make sure the monster hunting him would never catch him. 

With a crew assembled, all of them brilliant in their own ways, they were on their way to becoming the greatest criminal masterminds in history. Luke, without memory, could easily become anything or anyone he wanted. The face of the crew that stripped people of their fortunes. 

Doora, alone and bitter with more than a grudge against the universe and seemingly without a conscious. She had no trouble using illegal weapons against people. 

Aphra, brilliant and skilled with an affinity for machines and splicing, she fit into the crew easily. Bringing a steady flow of victims before them to target. 

Luke rubbed his eyes, rolling onto his side and sighing. He wouldn’t be able to go back to sleep. The man was waiting for him, hungry and prepared to feast on the small human. He couldn’t sleep with the monster waiting. 

#$#$#

Agent Tove poked the drunk pooled over the table. He groaned a bit but otherwise didn’t move.

“What are you going to do with him?”

“I haven’t decided yet but I’m thinking of dumping in him an alley and just leaving him there.”

“Agent.”

“Fine, have you got a cot or something around here?”

“Yeah, in the backroom but there’s a rent.” Agent Tove moved the man to slump over her shoulder. He was deadweight that smelled like shot glass. 

“I’ll pay for half of it. You can get the rest of from this pathetic waste. I need to get back to Naboo.”

Unknown the agent she dumped a fugitive onto the cot, sneering when he began to drool. She drank only rarely and those dependent on the drink sickened her. She’d seen too many people become shadows of their former selves because of it. 

“Agent Tove.” The earbud activated and she heard the voice of Vader. It was almost of comfort to have the man in her head. “Where are you?”

“Heading back to Naboo, sir.” She whispered, hiding her words from the others in the room. “What can I do for you?”

“Agent Kallus has decided to rescind his leave for immediate transfer to his new post. You are to be his new partner, take yourself to Lothal and meet him at the Imperial Academy.” 

“Aye, sir.” She grinned, wildly excited as she realized what he had done. 

Politics indeed. 

#$#$#$#$#$#$

Doctor Jifus Piett squinted at the man in front of her. 

“Come again?” Still dressed in her surgical scrubs and with a packet of patient files under one arm, an emergency surgery bag hanging from the other, one hand holding a tall cup of caf and her other free hand was digging at her ear. “I could have sworn you just said.”

“If you would accept my proposal, Doctor Jifus Piett,” Darth Vader, infamous and terrifying, loomed over her. Somehow monstrously tall despite the fact Doctor Piett was balanced on top of a stepladder. 

“If this was a request to perform a surgery or to accept a commission from the Navy I would understand.” The woman glanced to side only to find everyone at the work table had vanished. In fact, it sounded like the library was empty. “But for marriage?”

“I am in the market for a wife, Doctor, and you submitted your name to a certain matchmaker that operates out of Corellia. Your preferences are in line with mine and since I am on a time limit I must ask for your answer.” 

“I….” Slim, sliver framed glasses slipped down her nose. After a moment of quiet staring she shook her head. “I…hold onto these please.” With a wiggle she indicated the files underneath her arm. When they had been taken she turned back to the library shelf and pulled down a few more. “I don’t want to know how you got those files from the matchmaker because anyone who can convince Dolly to hand those over is a force to be reckoned with.”

“Perhaps I too requested her assistance?”

“I don’t believe you.” 

“As you wish,” He courteously stepped to the side when Doctor Piett jumped down. “However, your answer?”

“I want to discuss this first,” She said, leading him to the work table. With a muttered curse she began to stack the files and her chips. “But we’re going somewhere private.”

$%$%$

The basement of the Onderon Planetary Library was a massive hollowed out chamber carved from stone and lined with hundreds of geographic tile patterns. Several dozen workstations were arrayed around the room, all of them cluttered and empty. 

“This is my ‘office’ where I get most of my case studies done. I warn you, this is my only six hours off in the week and I reserve it for work so if I get distracted that’s why.” Doctor Piett set her files down, still cradling her cup of caf. “So, you just proposed marriage out of nowhere in the middle of a public library while six of my interns and medical students were watching. I hope you know that this, not matter the outcome, is going to bite me in the ass.” 

“I do.” He tucked his thumbs into his belt, watching the woman shift through her work. “I still have no received an answer.”

“Alright,” intuitive gray eyes turned to him, “Let’s look at this way. You want a political marriage.”

“If this were a political marriage then I would have something to gain from it, Doctor.”

“You say that like getting married to a Clone War veteran and attending at Onderon General Hospital is a disgraceful thing?”

“Doctor.”

“I get it, you said you were looking for a wife….why?”

“To be married?”

“But why, you are….Vader.”

“Which does not seem to have any effect on your insolence.”

“I’m not insolent, I’m rude. There is a difference and when you’re a surgeon slash medical doctor you get rude right quick. No one dying wants you to waste time being friendly. Thought I’m sure people you deal with would rather you be friendly.”

“Doctor.” As she spoke her hands fluttered about, touching a pad here or a stylus there. Sometimes she picked up a book and other times she adjusted her scrubs. “Your answer.” She stilled, watching him carefully for a full minute. The silence in the basement stretched for a while. 

“If..If I said yes…how would this work?”

“As Lady Vader you can accomplish that which you have been trying to do for the last few years. A considerable amount of power will be yours to wield as you wish. You will be able to work at any hospital of your choosing. Along with the power comes a fortune. A generous allowance will be made available to you.”

“I’m not into money, Vader. If I were do you think that I would be working at a general hospital?” Vader was almost silent. “What do you want in return? I know what was in Dolly’s file on me but political marriage means there has to be an equal exchange of something.”

“You must take the title Lady Vader.” The Doctor squinted.

“I want you to know that even if I did a good number of people would start call you Mr. Doctor Piett.” She almost smiled as she realized he was curious. “I’ve dealt with many powerful characters in the last few years. All of whom are possessive and terrifying.”

“You must be willing to attend balls and formal state functions with me in proper attire.”

“If you wanted a trophy wife then I believe you are speaking to the wrong person. I am not trophy wife material. I wasn’t trophy wife material when I was younger.”

“I have no interest in a trophy wife,” His voice was darker. The surgeon leaned back in her chair, balancing on back two legs. “I have need of a wife who can appease the general public and the Emperor. It should not need to be said, however, I will still say it, this means you must be completely monogamous despite any urges you might have otherwise.”

“That won’t be a problem. I must ask through, have you read my Clone War file?”

“I have.” 

“You don’t have a problem with what you see?”

“If I did I would not be here proposing.”

“We need to draw up a contract,” she sighed, “To be clear on what the terms of this marriage will be like.”

“You accept?” Doctor Piett nodded and squawked when her chair over-tipped and sent her crashing to the floor with a thunderous rattle that echoed around the basement. 

“I do.” The woman lifted a hand, forming a thumb-up, before dropping her hand to her chest, “That hurt.”

“I will have a Navy official draw up the term of agreement. Are there stipends you wish to make?”

“Yes,” Jifus did not move from her place on the floor. “A- I can operate in the ships that I’ll probably be staying on. B- None of my communications will be monitored. C- If you even think about losing your temper with me, forget it. D-….I’m think of some others later.”

“You seem unusually calm.”

“I’ll freak out later,” Jifus replied, “I’m trained to not panic. I’ll be honest when I woke up this morning I hadn’t expected something like this.”

Vader didn’t move, “I was under the impression you were a professional.”

“I am a professional. I haven’t slept in almost 16 years. I have stress-induced insomnia and stomach ulcers and I was just proposed and accepted said proposal from a man that average citizens fear so much that most of them would abandon their work in the middle of the day just to get away from.”

“I must confess, Doctor. This is not the usual reaction to my presence.”

“I dunno,” she blinked, “When you’ve taken Count Dooku’s temperature rectally dark powered force sensitives just aren’t as frightening. Just to be clear, I wasn’t a Separatist. Technically I was a Republic officer but…you saw the file. My point being….I don’t have one.” 

“You are not frightened of me?”

“Not really. You did just ask to marry me. By the way, there are some Axillian traditions we have to observe for this. I’ll tell you about them later when.”

“There will not be a later. I am due back on the Imperial Center for the engagement announcement in 32 hours. We must leave immediately.”

“Oh my….!” She glowered at him, “I have case files I have to do! Patient charts and treatments and a dozen different…..I’ll have to transfer all of my patients other doctors that already have staggering work loads and just drop all of them on.”

“I will send doctors from the Devestator, Doctor. Familiarize them with your patients in one hour.”

“I also have to pack.”

“I will send people to your house to fetch what you want.”

“Fine,” Finally the woman stood up, stretching out her arms and yawning, “Send those docs and I’ll draw up a list quickly and I also have to tell my family I am engaged.” 

“The Empire Day celebrations will suffice.” 

“Not for them.” With a new sense of urgency she began to sift through her files. “We need transport back to the hospital.”

“There is a speeder waiting outside.”

“Good.”

“Come, fiancé , there is much work to be done.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You'll see the con-man schemes come together in the next few chapters. Don't worry.


	7. The News Breaks

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A lot of people have conversations and most of them are pretty boring.

Doctor Piett boarded the ‘Devestator’ a few steps behind Lord Vader. Her eyes riveted on her on her datapad even as she bent over from the weight of her duffle bag. She seemed content to ignore the assembled officers and troops in favor of her glowing screen. 

“Lord Vader.” Captain Constantine saluted briskly, forcing himself to keep his eyes off the short woman at the Sith’s side. “Welcome back.”

“Enough,” he cut through the groveling with a wave, “Have Doctor Piett shown to the med-bay and her possession stored in a guest suite. Set up a line with the Emperor at once.”

“Aye, milord.” His pale eyes strayed to the short woman and he refocused on the task at hand.

“Doctor.” He nearly goggled when Vader turned and nodded to the woman, “Until later.”

“’’’’’eyup,” Still not looking up, she waved at him, “See ya at dinner.” A trooper accepted her duffle bag and visibly staggered under its weight. “Watch that bag,” she said unnecessarily, “It’s a little heavy.” 

“Yes, doctor.” An ensign approached under Vader’s watchful gaze, shaking.

“Doctor, if you would please follow me.”

“Sure thing.” Doctor Piett nodded, finally glancing up to the trembling man in front of her. He blinked beneath her nearly blinding smile. “Wow, I’d forgotten how ugly these ships could get. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the inside of a military med-bay. So, show me the way to my shiny new playground!” An inaudible ripple of shock echoed about the room as Vader seemingly ignored the insult to his ship and proceeded to vacate the docking bay. 

As Doctor Piett proceeded to make herself at home in the Devestator’s med-bay; Vader knelt beneath the glowing form of his master. 

“Lord Vader, I expect that you have found a suitable woman.”

“I have, master.” He didn’t look up, keeping his eyes on the floor. “I have transmitted her profile to you.”

“I have reviewed it, my apprentice. This seems to be a deviance from your usual choice of woman. I would have suspected a few Senators would have caught your attention, not an overweight surgeon. Perhaps you do not wish of a reminder of your failure.” Vader said nothing, bowed beneath the mocking tone of the Emperor. “Have you nothing to say in defense of your choice.” 

“She will be useful, my master. A surgeon of great skill is needed aboard military vessels.” There was also a matter of her discipline record that he’d carefully edited and removed most of before sending to the Emperor. In fact, Vader had removed most of her file to ensure that the Sith master would have no issue with the woman.   
“Hmm.” Palpatine leaned back, staring down at the man kneeling before him. Neither of them moved nor spoke. “Congratulations on your upcoming nuptials, Lord Vader. I am sure your wedding will be the highlight of the Empire Day celebrations.”

“Yes, my master.” The connection ports between his biological knees and prosthetics were aching. He had been kneeling for the better part of an hour before the Sith had delivered his approval. 

“Do not concern yourself with planning, my apprentice. The details will be handled.”

“The doctor has requested a few traditions of her home world be observed.”

“The concerns of this petty woman do not interest me, Vader. Explain to her my will and she will obey.” 

“Yes, my master.” The transmission cut a moment later. Left alone, quietly seething Vader considered his options and found his rage growing. Unable to bear facing the doctor, he moved toward his training room to demolish a few droids.

#$#$#$#$#

“What do you need?” Ensign Malko stiffened at the words. 

“Excuse me, Doctor. I have been assigned to you.” He squinted as the short woman emerged from the storage cooler with a handful of pins in her hand. “If you need anything I am too help you.” 

“That’s thoughtful,” She brushed past him and toward the bed of a sleeping Stormtrooper whose face was beaded with sweat. The man didn’t seem to be sleeping well. “What sort of stuff am I going to need, though?”

“Whatever comes to mind,” Malko stiffened as the Chief Medical Officer, followed by a babbling nurse, stormed into the ward.

“What is going on here?” The man shouted, spittle flying as his temper raged. “Who are you and what are you doing to may patient. I demand and explanation at once.” 

Doctor Piett didn’t glance up from her examination of the Stormtrooper. “I am Doctor Piett and this is my Ensign. Ensign, show him the paper please.” Malko passed over the datapad, wincing as the dark eyes focused on him. He had been aboard the ship long enough to know that the CMO was an unpleasant nightmare of a man just waiting for retirement. He was good and highly skilled but it was scuttlebutt’s opinion he needed a short trip into a black hole. “Why haven’t you diagnosed this man yet?”

“I’m not answerable to you, lady. I don’t care if you’ve been given full access to this ship I want you out of here!”

“I’m wondering why you haven’t diagnosed a simple case of appendicitis yet.” Malko inched back as CMO Rodderts, stomped forward. “This is pretty elementary for someone like you, Doctor. What’s the hold up?”

“I know its appendicitis!” Rodderts shouted, “Get out of my medbay!”

“His temperature is elevated and if the appendix isn’t removed then you’re going to have a preventable case of peritonitis on your hands that will be a nightmare to fix.” 

“Sir,” hoping to allevite the man’s temper, Malko interceded, “the Doctor here is on Lord Vader’s orders. She has.” His voice died down when the screaming man turned on him.

“I AM WELL AWARE WHO SIGNED THESE ORDERS!” Malko’s eyes widened as his heart constricted painfully tight as the hulking form of Lord Vader appeared behind the CMO.

“Then perhaps,” the icy tone in rumbling bass cut through the blustering shouting in an instant, the ward went silent as Doctor Rodderts swallowed suddenly. Vader’s hand landed on his shoulder and the Sith had leaned down slightly to hiss near the man’s ear. “You will act upon these orders and obey them….Doctor.” 

“Hello,” seemingly unruffled by the turnabout Doctor Piett waved to Vader. “You have good timing. I’d operate myself but I’m running on caf fumes and cheap bagels at the moment. So someone who isn’t ready to pass out should really operate.” 

“Of course.” Ensign Malko winced in sympathetic pain when the grip on the CMO’s shoulder seemed to tighten. “Doctor Rodderts will be honored. Correct?” 

“Aye, milord.”

“Good! Now, I assume you can only be down here for a good reason. I guess you need to speak.”

“Correct.” Lord Vader released the astonished CMO. 

“We should make a pit-stop by the mess,” Tucking her hands into her white coat, she followed the Sith. “I could use a sandwich right about now.” 

“Ensign,” Malko didn’t need any further orders from the Supreme Commander. He saluted and made off toward the mess.

“That is awfully convenient,” Jifus observed, “I like it. So, I’m going to assume that whatever permission you needed you got?”

“Yes.”

“And my wedding ideas were scrapped?”

“Yes.”

“Oh well.” For the first time since he’d proposed, Vader forced himself to take a decent look at the woman. One hand was tucked into the pocket of her lab coat and the other was playing with a stylus. Her eyes were hooded and lined with tiredness that seemed to extend bone-deep. Her scrubs were wrinkled, her hair only half-brushed and certain tinge of pain to her soul that only war-veterans could only carry. Palpatine had called her overweight but Vader saw nothing wrong with the slight roundness of her stomach and thighs. No one with any functioning brain cells would ever imply that Doctor Piett was fat but considering the fact that the Emperor was surrounded by rail thin woman who used beauty as a weapon it was no surprise. Since Vader was always around soldiers and agents that were thin due to high levels of physical exertions it was a little surprising to see a rounder woman.

Of course, Padme had been soft but she had also been tiny. Small arms, slender legs and delicate fingers, beauty was a prized weapon for her. 

“You’re staring.” Piett was staring at him with a frown, “What are you staring at?” The stocky woman tilted her head.

“Have you heard of the ancient gang called Vikings?”

“I have, they’re in all the text books aren’t they?”

“Yes.”

“That doesn’t explain why you were staring.” 

“You simply remind me of the old descriptions of the Vikings.” 

“You think I could bench press a star destroyer?” Her smile was tilted, “Beat the snot out of a droideka? Go toe to toe with a rancor. I’ll tell you what, I’ve only done one of those things and I’m not going to tell you which.” 

“Impressive.”

“Yep!” She flexed her covered arms and smirked into the shiny exterior of a turbolift door, “I am pretty impressive aren’t I.” 

“And not in the slightest bit arrogant.” He replied a bit dryly, entering the lift and waiting for her.

“I’ll tell you the same thing I told my little brother when he left for the academy. If you’re going to play in the big band then you best play your own horn.”

“Such wisdom.”

“It is, actually. You’d be surprised just how much self-validation helps if no one else is going to help you.” His hand clenched, remembering Obi Wan and every one of the Jedi council. “So, what is going on? I haven’t said anything because I’m going to assume you want to wait…ish.”

“The Emperor will release a statement tomorrow. The ceremony will take place on Empire Day. There are no details which we will need to handle.”

“Nice, I can be as far removed from a huge life decision as possible. I don’t even have to pick out the napkin colors.” 

“Yes.” As the turbo-lift stopped and the two found an empty conference room, he could sense the question behind her gaze. “What do you wish to ask?”

“What was her name?” He jerked backward, a hand curling around his lightsaber and the other rising as if too block himself from the question. Doctor Piett didn’t seem concerned with the actions, staring blankly at his mask instead. 

“There is.” 

“You aren’t the first person who was miserable going into an arranged marriage. I’ve been planet hopping for a while now, I can see the tells. You’re a widower aren’t you?”

He remembered Padme, the woman that he had burned the galaxy for. The senator with un-paralleled passion and brilliance whose kindness had touched the galaxy as a whole. Bowed beneath stately robes, dressed in simple Naboo garb, Vader could recall every detail of his wife. 

“I am.”

“Alright then.” A genuine expression of distress startled him. Jifus sighed a bit. “I’m not going to compete with…a memory.” She said, slowly. “I am a doctor, a surgeon. I have PTSD which means I can’t sleep much. I have a caf addiction that’s probably going to put me into an early grave. I don’t like talking to people and I have an unhealthy obsession with my work that has killed off all other chances of romance or marriage. I’m not soft, or gentle or beautiful so when you’re looking at me or talking to me I’d really prefer if you didn’t compare me to someone else.”

Two years ago speaking to him like that would have gotten the woman killed, fiancé or no fiancé. A year ago he would have shoved her into a wall and possibly a week ago he might have booted her from the room. 

Except that he had bid his goodbyes to Padme. She would always rule his heart and soul but if was going to move the galaxy forward in his vision then he, too, had to move forward. This included grieving properly. The woman in front of him had accepted, for all she knew, a murderous Sith Lord with hardly a blink of an eye. 

“It will be difficult,” he found himself admitting, “Though I promise to make the effort.”

“Fair enough.”

“And I trust that this conversation”

“It’s between the two of us, fiancé.” The doctor promised, “So long as you know I used to a raging alcoholic when I was younger. So I don’t drink anymore, been sober too long.” 

“Alcoholic?” This hadn’t been on her file. He tilted his head to the side. 

“Yeah, booze is pretty abundant if you put your basic chemistry skills to work and build your own still.” 

“I see.” This conversation was becoming uncomfortable. “Our living arrangements, what do you wish?”

“I’m going to be called to do a lot of specialty surgeries.” The woman frowned, “Seriously. I get a lot of calls and I pretty much end up wherever I am needed.” 

“Specialty surgeries?”

“Bacta is good but not the best; trust me. I’ll get those calls.”

“You will need a ship, a transport and protection detail and the necessary equipment?”

“That’s what the duffle bag is,” She frowned at him, “You don’t have to get me much of anything.”

“You will be Lady Vader, you will properly equipped and protected.”

“Alright but I get called to a lot dumps. I don’t want pushy Stormtroopers escorting me around on place they might not come back if they piss of the locals.”

“Very well.” 

“But having a nice home base would be a relief,” she waved a hand around, the stylus twisting between her fingers. “B T dubs, I don’t cook so if you order a bunch of food I can just reheat that would be great. I have no domestic skills to speak of.” 

“This does not concern me, nor does any sort of a scandal that might arise from your military record. I have little patience for rumor mongers of Imperial Center.”

“I don’t know, I like to read those gossip rags when I’m bored. I like a good laugh.”

“Hmm,” Vader paused, tucking his thumbs into his belt. “I will be gone often on business, military or otherwise and there might be the obligation to make a public spectacles of ourselves for the sake of a treaty.”

“I can do that I’m sure.” 

“No,” the Sith sank in the largest chair and offered a datapad to the woman, “I have drawn up the terms of the wedding and the marriage. If you wish to make changes or suggestions this is the moment.”

“Alright then.” Doctor Piett pulled a pair of a small spectacles from her pocket and slipped them on.

#$#$3

“I suppose I must offer my congratulations, Lt. Piett.” Captain Thrawn nodded to the shorter man standing in front of him. “If I understand this correctly a wedding is upcoming in your family.”

“Yes, sir.” Firmus Piett’s gaze did not waver but Thrawn had been around humans too long to miss the slight twitch of his cheek. 

“I am sure this is quite the surprise.”

“Yes, sir.” 

“I have received my invitation to the wedding and a brother to the bride I am sure you will also attend?” Thrawn watched as the man’s throat bob a bit and he nodded briskly. 

“Yes, sir.” 

“Tell me, what are your thoughts on this rather unprecedented event?”

“I have every confidence in my sister’s prudence and wisdom, Captain. Whatever decisions she makes are hers alone and do not require my input.”

“That is quite the diplomatic response.” 

“Yes, sir.” 

Sometimes it was infuriating how simple human officers would be. How completely they would shut down in an effort to hide their secrets. Thrawn had seen the man’s reaction to the announcement and he knew just how startled Piett was. 

“It will be the event of the social season.” The man’s posture stiffened even further. Thrawn’s eyes flashed but his voice died down. 

“Yes, sir.” 

“Hmmm.”

#$#$#

“The galaxy woke this morning to some shocking news!” A smiling news anchor was staring into a holo-cam for the Empire Day Eve celebrations. “This Empire Day the galaxy has the honor of a offering a hearty congratulations to Lord Vader.” Across the galaxy, people glanced up to their screens. Those who hadn’t been paying attention were doing so now. Drunks in bars, citizens getting ready for work, bored smugglers and everyone in between watching the news, paused in shock. “His upcoming wedding is going to be the prime event of the Empire Day Celebrations! Our future Lady Vader is a well-established doctor from the Outer Rim world of Axilla. Recently an attending doctor on Onderon.” A picture of a stocky woman in medical scrubs appeared next to the anchor’s head. “Doctor Jifus Piett.” A stock photo of Vader appeared right next to it with a bright picture of a pink heart. “The citizens of the galaxy wait with gleeful anticipation for the ceremony!”

Agent Kallus nearly choked on his breakfast, staring at the screen with oatmeal dripping from his mouth.

Luke and the rest of the assembled cadets on Lothal broke into raucous laughter.

Doora shrugged and turned back to sharpening her weapon. 

Gohan’s gaze on the screen was calculating while Aphra leaned over her shoulder to watch with a laughing gaze. 

Vader’s hands clenched into a fist but he didn’t move from his seat as his watery blue eyes focused on the screen. 

Doctor Piett did notice the broadcast; she was asleep on an empty bed in the med-bay. She was unable to see the aghast and side-eyed glances of the nurses and doctors walking around her. \

In his throne room, Emperor Palpatine cackled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The clever plans and sneaky tricks come in the next chapter. Promise.


	8. Wedding Bores

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A boring wedding and a lazy writers time-skip.

Agent Tove and Agent Kallus, along with the rest of the Imperial Cadet Academy, watched the wedding on the holo. Technically it wasn’t required but the entire population of the galaxy seemed hugely intrigued by it. 

Lord Vader was getting married on live The media firestorm before the wedding was a nightmare. It distracted everyone from the Governor Pryce, who attended, Minister Tua, who did not and was very bitter about, to the cadets who had crammed into his office to watch. 

“I simply don’t understand why I wasn’t invited.” Minster Tua had wound her arms into a knot an hour ago and still had not uncrossed them. Kallus was afraid she would lose the circulation in her arms. 

“I wasn’t invited either.” Tove loved gatherings where intel flowed like wine. 

“None of us were invited,” A cadet piped up from the spot they had claimed on the floor. A good thirty cadets were crammed into his office, taking up floor space to get a chance to watch the broadcast.   
Kallus sighed when Tove passed the box of sweets to a cadet. He’d have to get food out his rugs again.

“Everyone, be quite,” he commanded, watching the cadets settle into their respective spots quietly, “This is an important moment in our history which is why I invited you to share it with me.” That and his holo-connection was the strongest through some illegal upgrades courtesy of Tove. Of the cadets scattered around his floor he missed Luke, their primary target of observation and potential lead to the mysterious ‘Gohan’. “It’s starting.” 

Projected was the scene of Lord Vader standing beside the Emperor, waiting with impatience as the music swelled and the audience rose to its feet. Kallus knew Vader’s body language well and knew that the man was equally bored and irritated. Tove had probably caught on and was pretending to admire the woman that emerged from over-sized doors. 

They’d have to hunt down Luke after this. He was wisely using this as a distraction to do whatever he was planning for whomever he had chosen as his next victim. He had seen the recordings; the differences between the street rat and the Imperial cadet were striking only in the way a competent grifter could manage. If Kallus hadn’t seen Vader collar the boy he would never believe that the cadet had once been an urchin.

He wondered who would possibly be in the crews crosshairs this time. It had to be someone on Lothal and someone with power. The victim had to be connected and intelligent enough to hide a dirty secret. It had to be a secret dirty enough to get the attention of this particular crew; if they were sending in their front man. A few people stood out against the backdrop of other but with a candidate pool of over ten then it would be difficult to narrow down the list. 

“What have I missed?” Luke slipped into the room with a wide smile and an easy nod to the agents and Minster Tua.

“Aside from eroding discipline of this academy? Nothing.” Tua commented. 

“Okay,” Luke slid into the remaining spot on the floor. 

“That dress is hideous,” Tua said as both Lord Vader and the Doctor knelt in front of the Emperor. 

“What?” A few cadets looked back even as the vows were being recited.

“She is a round woman and they stuck her in this nightmarish poof number? Honestly, they should have gone with something much more flattering with wide shoulders.”

“Agreed,” Kallus nodded, “I think the waist should have been much higher, having it so low only emphasizes the fact it seems to be poorly tailored.”

“Do you think she looks bored?” Luke asked, “I think she looks bored.” 

“She does.” Kallus watched the doctor suppress a yawn, “For the grand ceremony of the Empire Day celebration it looks poorly planned.” He’d have to go through the files and the security footage to see what Luke had been up to. If the boy had access to anything in the academy files then it might spell disaster if he wanted to take down the school as well. 

$$$$$$$

If Jifus got any more bored then she was going to fall asleep at her own wedding in front of the Emperor and the universe at large. She suppressed and yawn and allow the familiar mask from her Clone War days to take over. It was the face that had been presented to both Jedi generals and Seppie commanders; it was false attention and mindless interest. 

The Emperor, how had been distant sort of presence in the universe, was standing in front of them. His speech was lasting close to twenty minutes and she and Vader had been kneeling the entire time. Her knees were starting to hurt. 

She stared intently at the stone floor, tracing the light spidery veins of gray and pink. It was a nice floor and if she focused hard enough then she might be successful in drowning out the condescension and mockery from above. It didn’t take a genius to know that most of his speech was meant to mock Vader. If the occasional chuckles and whisperings were anything to go by then a good number of people were getting the inside jokes. 

If this entire ceremony was only being used to mock the Sith Lord at her side and use it to humiliate him then, as a doctor, she could not sit by. She didn’t know his body language well yet but she got the sense he was wallowing in the insults. Taking them to heart and believing them even as he knelt before Emperor Palpatine. There were some hidden digs about Jifus herself but she had been an army doctor, an alcoholic, in jail, arrested as a protester, and had bounced from hospital to hospital across the galaxy; there was nothing that the sagging bag of bones could rasp that would get under her skin.

“And with eternal commitment we must bear in mind that our patience with our spouse, to hear them out, to listen to their explanations.” Vader did not move but his chest tightened. “To heed their advice and their requests, to be honest with them and others.” 

He didn’t dare look up to see the cruel twist of his master’s mouth or the mocking glint in his unnatural eyes. The knowledge that Palpatine would use this opportunity to mock him over his failure with Padme had not prepared him for the reality. It was so much worse than anything he had imagined, to hear his mistakes dragged out into public under the guise of well-wishing and congratulations.

Padme, the child, Ahsoka, the initiates and padawans, the younglings; all of them he had failed. Even his abolitionist works, his rebellion and discreet funding for semi-legal projects were not enough to make up for his evils. The invisible shackles on his body, keeping him as the Emperor’s….he paused in his misery to focus on Doctor Piett. Unlike him she did not seem to be paying any attention to anything coming out of the Emperor’s mouth. Her mind was occupied with planning a surgery she had scheduled two days from now. He could see the skin she was cutting into, the positons of her tools, the shadowy figures of nurses and different ways it could go wrong. It was, from his standpoint, a little disturbing. Vader didn’t dare dig further, pulling away and leaving the Doctor to her distracted musings. 

#$#$#$

“That was the most boring wedding I’ve ever been to.” Grand Moff Tarkin paused as he heard the words, shifting about to listen unobtrusively. “Honestly, you’d think that an Axxilian wedding would have been wanted.”

“There would at least be a better free bar.” Tarkin turned fully to see the elder Doctor Piett and his wife grousing by the bar. Madam Piett’s one good eye zeroed on him for a full second before shifting back to her husband, “I think we’ll have to do a secondary one, I don’t this on will take.”

“Besides, everyone at home really wants to celebrate a life-long commitment properly.” Tarkin raised an eyebrow when the woman crooked a finger at him. 

“If you’re going to eavesdrop then at least do it discreetly,” She grumbled, “Now be a good fellow and fetch me one of those microscopic appetizers.”

“Madam,” He drew himself up, affronted. 

“Go, you spindly ferret,” she ordered, pushing him away, “hurry up.” Tarkin turned about, fuming. He would have argued except the Emperor had been explicitly clear that he was not to raise any sort of fuss at Vader’s wedding. Vader himself was standing to side with the newly minted Lady Vader beside him, both of them looked bored. 

“I think people are having fun,” Jifus offered a bit weakly. “This seems to be a very big….Imperial Center wedding.”   
“Would you have done it differently?” Vader asked.

“Yes and I know you said we weren’t going to do Axxilian traditions but I did. It’s waiting for you in your…our house….place….palace?”

“It is simply referred to as the residence,” He replied, looking down at her. “What is it?”

“It’s a present, we’re supposed to exchange them as a sort of ‘this is something I made for you and it shows my commitment’ sort of thing. I made it a few years ago in one of bouts of unemployment.” 

“I have no such gift for you.” They both eyed a holo-camera operator that was inching along the tables toward them. “My apologies.” 

“You can get it to me later,” she glanced around, “is there anything here not alcoholic?”

“I believe that this is not the case. The people must have something to make this entire evening tolerable.” 

“I’m so glad we both hate this. Talking about the wedding, what would you have done if you’d planned it?”

“I would have done many things differently.” He admitted quietly, watching Madam Piett approach. Her Home Guard uniform was crisp, pressed and her buttons were polished to a dull shine. She cut through the hordes of Imperial officers and officials with aggressive energy. “Your mother approaches.” 

“Brace yourself,” Jifus advised, “You’ll be addressed formally as Son-in Law. When you need to address her then just say Mother-in-law. It’s how we do it so don’t get uncomfortable.” 

“Very well.” 

“Daughter, you look fine.”

“You fine as well, Mother.” 

“Is there a reason you’re avoiding participating in your own wedding?” 

“Other than the fact I know a total of ten people here and I’m bored? No, no reason.” 

“Ha!” Vader watched Madam Piett closely. She was woman as short as her daughter, her hair an identical iron gray but with a significant increase in wrinkles. A black cloth and was draped along one side of her head, covering her left eye, the forehead above it, the cheek below it and along her ear and the side of her head. Spider webbed scars inched close to her right eye that gave a vague indication what kind of scarring had to be hidden beneath her partial mask. Unlike Jifus’ casual stance, Madam Piett stood like a soldier, a bar brawler, someone who was ready to pick a fight. 

“I hope you know we’ll be holding a proper reception when we get home, daughter.” 

“I don’t blame you,” Jifus moved her hands as if she was ready to stuff them into non-existent pockets. “Ah, anyway. What brings you over here?”

“For some reason we were delegated to the end of the congratulation line,” the woman grumbled, “And I wanted the opinion of my son-in-law on the pirate problem in my system.” Vader tilted his head when the woman turned to him, “Well, you’re a supreme commander too so it seems that you might know a thing or two about it. Unless your rank is only political and not military.”

“No, I have earned my credentials.” He replied stiffly, tucking his thumbs into his belt, “I am no politician.” 

“Excellent!” Madam Piett folded her arms behind her back, “Now, about your work on the Outer Rim.” 

_____

“I would get involved but I don’t think that would be smart.” Jifus squinted at her brother.

“What was your first clue?” 

“Your….husband, Mother, Grand Admiral Thrawn all discussing strategy is a little unnerving.”

“You’re mother, at least, is enjoying herself,” the siblings turned to their father when he walked over, “What are you two doing?”

“Trying to wipe the stench of sycophants off this hideous dress.”

“Trying to avoid flirting.” 

The three paused to watch the crowd of assembled military officers debate, Vader gesturing firmly while Madam Piett jabbed a hand toward Thrawn. Thrawn seemed calm but his red eyes were blazing. 

“You realize I have to leave with the Grand Admiral, right?” Firmus sighed, glancing down into his drink. “I am sure to be interrogated for this whole spectacle.”

“I have to go home with mine.” The doctors said in tandem and exchanged a laughed a moment later. 

“There are holo-cams at this wedding. Disgraceful.”

“Agreed.”

Privately Jifus was glad that the Emperor had retired for the evening and hadn’t come to the wedding reception. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to stop herself from making her usual remarks she kept reserved for politicians. As they spoke, ignoring the others, the journalists on the prowl and a few people flirting with them, and Moff Tarkin when he tried to join in none of them noticed when Vader finally detached himself from the conversation and made his way over. 

“Wife.” Jifus looked up from the arranged display of shakers and napkins her brother was using to illustrate his story to see her husband standing over the table. “The hour is late, if you would accompany me?”

“Right,” she took his proffered hand, heaving herself to her feet. She waved to her ashen faced brother and bored father. “Time to leave.” 

$%$%$

“Do you think they look excited to leave?” Tove asked; when Kallus finally looked up from his datapad. “Lady Vader looks very excited to leave.”

“She looked bored all evening.” 

“I don’t blame her.” Minister Tua sighed, “I’m glad I wasn’t invited. That looked terrible. Lord Vader looked reluctant to get married, I feel sorry for the both of them.”

“Agreed.”

$#$$

3 Months Later

It took three months of careful digging, unobtrusive probing and truly inspired hacking to discover just who the crew was targeting next. 

Governor Pryce. The stern, unpleasant woman with a vicious streak a lightyear wide was going to be the next victim. 

Personally, Kallus didn’t want to bother trying to stop their scheme, not that he knew what it was, and he was more focused on who was going to show up to help. Tove had been over the moon when Luke’s barest hint of digital footprint pointed them toward Pryce.

“We have a unique opportunity,” Tove paced back and force, her fingers breaking a stylus into smaller and smaller pieces. “We have Luke under observation and now, when his scheme is up then he’ll vanish.” 

“If the boy disappears then our last connection to the crew vanishes and we will not find Gohan or Aphra.”

“I know.” The fine pieces of the stylus drifted toward the ground. “We don’t even know how he’s going to do it. We don’t know his escape plan or any of his routes. We don’t even know how he manages to sneak out of the Academy and that is irritating me.” 

“I agree.” They’d been run ragged trying to keep up with Luke and the plans. “Three months for a name and now we are unbelievably close to this Gohan and Aphra…we cannot lose this lead.” 

“What should we do? His alias is airtight; it’s held up to every single test I can think of…the boy is even up for adoption.” 

“Adoption?” Kallus swirled the drink in his hand, “Why?”

“It’s standard for all of the wards of the state and his ID says he’s a ward of the state so yes, he’s up for adoption.”

“That is clever. No ever adopts children in this galaxy….that means it would make his case even look more legitament.” 

“And since there are so few case workers that means the person they’ve placed him under has no idea who we’re talking about anyway.” 

“That is clever.” Kallus watched Tove run a hand through her graying hair in fury. “I want to know how they managed to get control over government records.” 

“They’d have to have control of a government building,” Tove replied, “One with the proper recognition codes and the right signal and, if they ran willy nilly over it then it would have to be abandoned but still online.” 

 

“There are records of government buildings.” 

“In this galaxy, there are a million of them but...” Tove rubbed her chin, “If we made a program to search for some specific parameters then…we might find a place where they’re getting to the files.” 

“Those files would be easy access from any console registered correctly and…it might serve as a base if it’s empty.” 

“That’s an excellent place to start and for now we’ll need to comm Lord Vader with our piece of intel.”

“It’s not much.”

“It’s better than nothing.” 

$#$#$

“Does anyone know why the living room is pink?” Doctor Vader, what she and husband finally settled on, peered at the walls with squint of someone who needed sleep but was too stubborn to actually go to bed. Her glasses on her forehead slipped down to rest on her nose awkwardly as he rubbed her forehead. “What is going on?”

“Uh, my lady.” The major domo inched forward, “If I may?”

“Go ahead.”

“Lord Vader had the room painted while you were on Corellia for your conference. He said you expressed a desire to have the residence painted a different color than gray and white.”

“Pink though? It’s not a bad color but why pink?”

“I cannot say why, madam.”

“Right. I’m pretty sure this is because our last argument.” She forced herself not to laugh or appreciate her husband’s mostly hidden ability to be the galaxies biggest smart ass. “It’s fine, don’t worry. Is he in?”

“The office, Doctor.” 

“Thank you.” Jifus kept her chuckles down long enough to make it to the office where she dropped onto the couch and began to laugh “What’s with pink?” She managed after a few minutes of unrestrained laughing. 

“You wished for a new color. Something bright, were you’re words.” 

“So you settle for pink? What will they say when they see it.” 

“As we have yet to entertain anyone, my wife, I do not believe that this is a concern.” Darth Vader. “How was your conference?”

“Probably better than your meeting with the Emperor,” she answered, stretching out on the couch and watching the black armored man behind the desk. “What else did he have to say about us?”

“He wondered, quite obviously, when we were going to be having children.” A cold wash of air wafted around the room while Jifus pulled a spare pillow over his face and tried her best to melt into the couch. 

“Does he know that I can’t have children?”

“I do not believe so.” 

“He’s in for a nasty shock when he realized he’s not getting a blood heir.”

“Indeed.” 

They had been married three months. During which she had forcibly be-friended the man she married. After watching the obviously abusive relationship between Vader and the Emperor she had done it for the sake of thumbing her nose at Palpatine. He hadn’t needed much pushing and had proven himself to be a quiet smart ass and if she noticed his illegal activities she said nothing. Of course, he tended to ignore all of her illegal works for the sake of presenting a bland, boring, front for the galaxy to ogle. His office had been transformed into their office with the installation of a hugely comfortable couch and a lot of her mementos of her years. Her perception of personal space was almost non-existent after having spent so many years in close quarters with people and aliens in all manners of situations. 

“What did the staff think of it?” She had to be referring to the pink living room. 

“They said nothing.” 

“Yeah, but what did they think?”

“Nothing.”

“You’re lying.”

“Well observed.” 

“Hmph.” Jifus sighed. Almost a few hours passed of Jifus dozing on the couch while Darth Vader worked on his fleet paperwork. She jolted when he spoke next.

“Wife, what do you think of Lothal.”

“Never been.” 

“Have you heard of it?”

“A few times, it’s not much of a planet. Why?”

“Would you care to visit?”

“What on Lothal?”

“Governor Pryce.” 

“Isn’t she the one that just got…outed for pushing a lot of the homeless kids into those nasty factories for increase in productions and for having a secret weapons stock?”

“She is.” 

“Hmm,” her mind fiddled with the idea, but half-asleep was not a good time for well-thought out thinking. “What about it?”

“I wish to oversee the transition of Minster Tua to governor. To deliver a pointed message that nothing is overlooked by the Empire including corrupt Governors of small, insignificant planets.” 

“That’s a message,” she agreed, “Fine; we can go but not right now.”

“Very well.” 

“Now I’m going to sleep.” She yawned, burrowing further into the couch for warmth. “Wake me up when the century is over.”

“Wife, you will injure your back if you insist on sleeping on that thing again.”

“You’re dissing my couch,” She grumbled, rolling over and standing. “Fine, I’ll sleep in a real bed for once just so long as you actually get sleep tonight too.”

“Agreed.” He nodded, watching the woman amble from the room. Once he heard the sound of her door sliding shut he focused again on his datapad. Kallus’ message was short and he had to grimace in distaste. It was too short with a significant lack of progress to justify three months of a posting. He wondered if the boy, Luke, would panic if Vader arrived on Lothal. What would he do under the pressure of a visiting Sith Lord? If the boy was still on Lothal when he arrived and if he wasn’t then the last connection to the mysterious Gohan was gone. 

#$#$#

“Lord Vader is coming here?” Minster Tua placed her hands on her chest, staring at the officers across the desk. “To Lothal.” 

“Lord and Lady Vader are coming to oversee your transition to governor runs smoothly.” Kallus lied easily, “They wish to convey their congratulations.”

“Oh, goodness.” She dithered about her officer for a moment, “We will be so honored. This is a grand occasion. We should set up the academy to receive them, goddness! Agent Kallus, is there anything else?” 

“Just that he will be inspecting the Stormtrooper cadets as well as the Stormtroopers during his visit,” Tove interjected. 

“I need a new hat.” Tua muttered quietly, “Lady Vader is coming as well?”

“Yes.” The agents exchanged a look. The Imperial rumor mill didn’t have much to say on Lady Vader, not enough people had met her, they were a little nervous. “Lord and Lady Vader are coming to Lothal.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter is all Luke and you all get that Vader meeting Luke scene you want.


	9. The Moons of Iego

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke meets Lady and Lord Vader.

The crime they decided to expose Governor Pryce for was one that generated horror in the mid rim but didn’t surprise anyone in the outer rim. She had been, until Gohan had uncovered her crimes, been moving street rats and orphans off Lothal and into cheap labor camps owned by the crime bosses of the outer rim. Most of them went down with the governor and the camps were being demolished. The children had been rescued and shuttled off to different places for rehabilitation. 

Luke, having done most of the digging from the academy, was grateful for Doora’s assistance in mugging Pyrce’s aides of her codes. Aphra had erased records of the secret weapons cache and had loaded the entire thing onto a personal ship and made for her personal museum/ restoration buildings. Gohan was due on planet in a few days to pick Luke up and to sweep the last of the cash that had eased between the cracks of the Imperial investigation into a nice bag….or seven. 

Still, because Pryce had target children who would normally be ignored, it meant that all of the orphans, foster children, and remaining street rats were being interviewed. That meant half of the Stormtrooper academy was lined outside the various offices to speak to investigators. Luke, who could spin tales from nothing, had already concluded his interview. Given by a sharp faced Tove. Since the ISB was already on planet it had been easy to lead them on the investigation on Pyrce and let them expose her. 

Luke was interview and now he was sitting in the crowded med-bay waiting to be seen by a doctor for another evaluation. Apparently Pyrce had also fudged up a number of records too. 

“Cadet Luke,” A harried medical assistant approached, looking about at the cadets all waiting.

“Present” He stood.

“Oh, good, come with me please. We have a doctor available.”

“Okay.” He tucked his cap under his arm, following the assistant into a back room. The room was smaller but Luke hoisted himself onto the bed with little trouble, glancing around. Gohan’s falsified records would stand against anyone’s scrutiny so he had no worries. 

“She’s finishing up with another patient,” The assistant said, “She’ll be along in a minute. Wait here please.”

“Okay.” Luke kicked his heels. He only had a few more days until Gohan came to get him and then he could go back to sleeping in his comfortable bed at their abandoned separatist base. He could wake up to Gohan’s semi-eatable cooking and he’d get to be free to bother Aphra while she fiddled with her weapons and droids. He’d even watch a few of those training videos with Doora if it meant he got to spend time with someone he liked. 

“Hello there.” Luke glanced up. The woman entering was shorter than the assistant. The words stocky and brawny came to mind. Her scrubs were clean though but her lab coat was threadbare. Gray hair cut into a neat bob lined a face with laugh lines and attractive crows feet. Her easy smile charmed Luke immediately. She actually looked familiar but Luke couldn’t place it. “I’m Doctor Lady. I’m going to be giving you a full check-up. Is that alright with you?”

“Uh, yes.” She was friendly, her motions loose and easy. “I’m Luke.”

“Nice to meet you, Luke.” She began pulling out various medial implements and lining them up on the trays next to him. 

“What kind of name is Doctor Lady?” 

“Oh, my husband and I haven’t been able to agree on which last name I should use when I introduce myself. My interns keep stumbling over it so they just started calling me Doctor Lady and it’s stuck.” 

Luke nodded, wondering if she would be willing to work on commission. Gohan was still looking for someone to evaluate the latest batch of freed slaves from Ryloth. 

“The medical interns and the surgical interns usually argue about stuff like that but they all decided to use it. It bugs my husband something fierce.”

“You’re a surgeon too?” 

“Yep.” Luke boggled at the information as he gaped at the next instrument that she produced from her black bag. A stethoscope? “I’m certified to operate on ten species and medical expertise on three.”

“Is that a stethoscope?” Luke wondered. Those things were ancient, almost useless when compared to modern technology. 

“Oh yeah, this thing.” She gestured with it, “Someone owed me a favor.” 

“But what about the scanner?”

“Scanners are good but my ears are better. Plus, technology doesn’t always work or isn’t available so it’s good to have to old fashioned toys.”

“Oh” Luke tilted his head, “You know from experience?”

“Oh yeah,” But she didn’t elaborate. “Now, I need you to take a few deep breaths for me, okay?”

“Okay.” She slid the diaprahm under his tunic and nodded. A second later she moved it to his back. When she pulled the earpieces out she nodded. “Alright. Sounding good.”

“Can I try it?” He blurted, blushing when a gray eyebrow rose. “Please.”

“Alright.” Luke tried it, a little excited. Aphra would be jealous. “You can put it here.” She tapped the spot just beneath her collar bone and just above her heart. “Listen to my heart beat.” Luke obeyed and listened in wonder. The steady lub-dub of her heart was loud in his ears, almost tinted by a slight metallic noise and brush of fabric against the diaphragm. Every noise was amplified, startlingly so. He could understand why human ears would be better than the scanner sometimes. 

“Wow.”

“That was my reaction when I got it. My little brother had to deal with me using it on him for days. I was so proud of it.”

“Who owed you the favor?” The doctor winked but didn’t answer. As the evaluation proceeded Luke had to ask. 

“How come you can operate on so many species? Isn’t that hard to learn?”

“I started when I was your age,” the doctor replied, “first year of medical school. If you want to get into the program I did you either have to have a long lived species or you have to start very young.”

“How many humans can do it?” 

“Uh….200 at last count, most species that operate on more than one is the standard ER doctors. You want someone who can operate on a twi’lek who got hurt and diagnose the injuries on a rodian. So if you wonder why ER docs are usually older aliens that you’re answer.”

“What do you do?”

“Surgeries mostly. Not so much ER anymore but the ones that need to be done but aren’t immediately necessary. Transplants, supplemental aide during an emergency. Relief aid on mercy missions such. I get called up a lot because I am a registered Mobile Doctor.”

“You get called when needed and you go because you can move easily.” Luke said and she nodded, taking a blood sample. 

“Yep, that’s me. But you know, on Corellia most doctors are trained for the five species that live in their system. So they usually are the ones that join the Mobile Doctor program too. Never mess with a Corellian doctor; they’re vicious when they want to be.” 

“Okay,” Luke stifled a chuckle when she began to palpate his hands and wrists. “So humans can’t really be general docs for the galaxy.”

“Nope, not that we can’t do it but more like we don’t live long enough. My years of school are almost half my age.”

“So did you start with surgeries?” Luke wondered. 

“Yep, I got my Five Species certification just before the breakout of the Clone War. Finished it after the war and then I went to medicine.”

Luke nodded, impressed. “Was it hard?”

“Of course it was,” She winked at him, “But It’s been worth it.” Luke didn’t meet a lot of adults that weren’t criminals, idiots or die-hard imperials. It was odd to find someone with so much personality, so interesting with a fascinating history. He didn’t have any adults in his life. Aphra and Gohan were the closest but they were more focused on criminal activities than building lives. Honestly, seeing a normal woman was kind of strange. 

“Okay.” He kicked his heels against the table some more, waiting for her to finish. He answer her questions the best he could, trying to ignore the conspicuous blank that was most of his life. 

“Almost done here,” she read out his blood sample results and frowned. “I hate to say this as must as I hate to see if but you’re behind on your inncoulations.”

“I am?” Health care wasn’t really something that Gohan brought up. He’d have to use this as an opportunity to mock her in the near future. 

“I can give them to you but you’re missing a good number. You can’t get them all at once either or you’ll get sick. At best you need time to process each one…about eight weeks before your up to date.”

“Oh.” He didn’t have eight weeks. He left with Gohan in a few days. “Uh…”

“I’ll talk to you about this evening, alright? We’ll work up a schedule with your doc here. They’ll give you meds through the rest of your cadet…acy?”

Luke shrugged when she fumbled the word. “Okay.”

“Uh, now. I’m going to give you the most important one right now. It’s going to make you a little disoriented while it kicks in so I’m going to assign you to a bed in the med-bay.”

“But I have.” 

“Luke,” She paused, “This is a vaccine for the most dangerous of human diseases.” Luke blanched, “You need it now.” 

Luke dipped his eyes downward and nodded. “Alright then.”

“You’ll probably end up sleeping for a while but I promise you’ll wake up feeling great.” Doctor Lady patted his shoulder and pushed his sleeve upward. When she’d swabbed his arm she produced a hypo and waggled it under his nose. “Let me put it this way if you’re feeling sulky. This is a hybrid between human cold and the twi’lek version of the plague. It’s a super disease that spreads the fastest among children. If you got it you’d probably hand it off to your classmates and then outward.”

“Okay.” Luke still felt sulky. He didn’t get sick but he didn’t want to get anyone else sick by accident. He wondered if he should swipe some for Doora. When the doctor pressed he hypo to his arm he barely felt it and watched her dispassiontly dispose the tip.

“Alright, come with me.” Luke hopped off the table, following the short woman. She lead him to one of the few empty beds in the med-bay. He recognized his classmates and fellow cadets. They looked confused and star struck. Like they weren’t expecting this kind of behavior or help from adults. 

“This one is for you. Take off your boots and lay down and I promise you’ll be out in about twenty minutes.”

“But other than the vaccines I’m healthy?” 

“Hmm.” Luke felt the stares of his classmates when the doctor patted his forehead and pulled the sheet further over him. He blushed under their glances and stifled giggling. “For the most part.” Luke nodded, yanking forcibly on his character and laying back on the pillows. He offered a smile to the doctor as she nodded her goodbye. For a few more minutes he watched her move from bed to bed, talking to the cadet Stormtroopers and the medical assistants. When his eyes finally grew too heavy he finally fell asleep to the image of Doctor Lady talking to one of the oldest boys in hushed tones. 

#$#$#

“And the boy?”

“He’s been cooperative but I’m positive he was the reason we got the information we did. He was the one, with his crew, that uncovered Pyrce’s dealings. I think there was another reason but if there was the records are gone.” Agent Tove watched Vader carefully. His hands were clasped behind his back and stared onto the Capital City skyline. He had been quiet since he’d arrived, going through the motions of appointing another Governor. 

“Do you have any evidence?”

“No, my lord. But sources from his dormitory tell us that Luke has frequent nightmares. He doesn’t tell them was they are about and his scores indicate he is doing his best to remain average. Though, his aptitude tests would suggest otherwise.”

“How many of the records are true records?”

“The ones the academy has administered are the only ones we trust. Kallus and I have been observing him and he is most definitely a criminal.” 

“Have you found any connection with him and the Gohan person?”

“No but we know that the sniper from Nar Shadda was on Lothal. They mugged an aide for clearance codes and while we tried to follow them as unobtrusively as possible they escaped.”

“Indeed.” 

“My lord, we are observing grifter in his natural habitat. He knows that if he leaves even a faint trail that he’ll be arrested or at least followed. If we want to use Luke as a springboard for the rest of the crew then we need to keep him out of contact with his companion.”

“Prison would not work.”

“No, Lord Vader. That would alert Gohan and Aphra we are after them.” 

“Indeed.” 

“I have come to no conclusions as to how we can keep Luke under surveillance long enough for him to make a mistake but.”

“I see.” Vader cut her off. “Where is his forged file?”

“Here.” He took that pad and scrolled through the information. “At the moment he’s in the med bay for a new medical evaluation. Most of the files that Pyrce had on orphans were corrupted.”

“Orphans?” 

“Yes, milord. Luke is technically a ward of the state. He’s social worker is a real one, overworked and underpaid and probably wouldn’t notice another file added to the pile. He used that as his cover to get into the academy.”

Vader surveyed the file. It was past midnight on Lothal. He had been busy with a multitude of ceremonies all day. 

“Very well. Keep an eye on any of his companions and continue to survey the boy.” He closed the pad and made his way to the med bay. There he found his wife. She was sleeping on a small cot shoved against the wall with a piece of equipment. Unfortunately it was a common place to find her; sleeping near her cases so as to be one immediate hand if anything went wrong. A medical assistant ducked under his desk and the attending interns fled. None of the children in the beds moved though. They were sound asleep. 

The gentle noise of twenty plus children all sharing a room was mostly undisturbed by his respirator. Vader paused long enough to unfold a blanket over his wife before proceeding down to where he knew Luke was resting. 

The chart at the end of the grifters bed displayed a neat medical chart, all written in his wife’s boxish handwriting. It showed a rather significant lack of vaccines and inoculations with several deep tissue and bone damages that had healed well but not perfectly. The unwritten questions were obvious. 

Luke looked perfectly innocent. His slender form draped in a heavy blanket and his face clear of any tension. He did not look anything like the street rat he’d apprehended on Nar Shadda nor did he look like the tense cadet he’d glimpsed during the review. He wondered where his parents were. Who had raised the boy? What had they done wrong or what horrors had happened to them to prompt Luke into a life of high stakes crime? 

Who cared for him? 

Was Gohan the leader or where they just another criminal on the crew? Did Luke know them well or were they just contacts? How come the entire investigation rested on the narrow shoulders of this boy? 

Vader paused when Luke snuffed quietly and pulled the blanket closer. The pre-teen, he couldn’t have been as old as the chart said, curled into a tighter ball. The reforming Sith lord nearly smiled when he realized that the boy was cold. A blanket in mild temperatures would have been fine for someone from a mild climate but for anyone from a planet that was just beneath the threshold of human habitation the memory of the heat would never go away. They would always be cold, after time it would ease but the memory of heat was in their bones. Always. 

He would know, once it had been him who had been cold. 

Luke turned again, burrowing deeper into his bed and whining a bit when he shifted. Vader sighed and fetched an extra blanket from the cabinet. He draped it over the boy’s inert form reluctantly and watched Luke settled down a little more comfortably a moment later. A little curious he probed at the boys mind, searching for anything that might give his crew away. He was surprised to find a significant shield. Luke’s mind was protected by a brilliant shield that made him squint from the brightness. He was a powerful force sensitive.

When Vader grew accustomed to the bright glow he began prodding it. It revealed several facts. First, the Luke was only protecting a portion of the memories that he should have been. The shield was erected over the memories he could access but it seemed the boy missing a chunk of his own history. 

Amnesia? 

Odd. 

“What are you doing?” Vader withdrew from his probing to find that his wife had woken and made her way over to him without it registering. She looked groggy and confused. There was a tilt to her head that suggested if he didn’t have a proper explanation she’d boot him out so fast his head would spin. Since she’d done it before and he had no desire to relive the embarrassment he blurted, “The boy was cold.”

“Okay?”

“I came to speak to you,” he tucked his thumbs into his belt. “When I sensed his distress.”

“Huh?” She nodded to the door. “Come on, the observation room is free.” When she had shut the door and turned on the opaque privacy screen. “What did you need?”

“Tua is officially the governor. The necessary paperwork is complete and we are no longer needed on Lothal.”

“We’re only partly though the academy students that need updated records.” She nodded to the rows of sleeping children. “I plan to stay.” 

“Very well.” He wasn’t surprised. “Did I wake you?”

“No,” she shrugged, “I always wake up at two or three to check on patients as a precautionary measure.” Jifus shoved her hands into her pockets and glumly watched the cadets. They stood in silence for several minutes. 

“You are troubled.” Vader observed, “What is it?” 

“They’re children.” Jifus said, “They’re children and they’re being trained as Stormtroopers. Last time I saw something like this...I don’t know why we need so many kids to carry weapons in this galaxy. Don’t you think we worship the conquerors and the bloody battle fields enough? Don’t you think we’ve honored and lauded the brilliant killers and the blood thirsty generals enough? You’d think after a war like that we’d want the kids to grow up to become something else. To be explorers, to build, to create, to do something other than hurt one another. All those people dead and the stupid politicians and the karking jedi gone and they still consume of the flesh of the innocent like some beast that could never be sated. We’ve been raising the next generation of criminals and subjugators and nothing else. What will we become? What are they going to say about us?” Her shoulders slumped and Vader shifted uneasily. 

“What would you do?” 

“Excuse me?” She blinked, light gray eyes focusing on him.

“What would you teach? What would you pass on? If the opportunity arose then what further elaborations do you want added to your chapter of the history books?” He stepped closer, his cape brushing around his boots. Jifus tilted her head back. “What legacy do you want to be carried on?”

“As in children?” He nodded. “You know I can’t have kids right? I don’t know why the Emperor keeps making that point but I can’t and you can’t. Plus, even if we could it would be nearly impossible anyway. There’s no.”

“Wife,” Vader seized her shoulders biceps gently, pulling her closer as his voice vibrated with the sudden brilliant idea that struck and the excitement that buoyed it. “You think too literally. There are other ways to carry a legacy.”

“You’ve lost me.” Her eyes flickered from his mask to arms and then back again. 

“Adoption.” 

“I’m still lost.” She blinked. 

“You wish to pass on a new kind of future. The future you and I were denied, to build something that posterity will look back upon with pride and honor. The option of adoption is not so ridiculous.”

“It is…actually.” She blinked and then shook her head. “The courts would never allow it. You’re an honest to God sith lord and I’m an ex-alcoholic surgeon with a criminal record and trauma. You want to sic two people who hardly form a functioning person on a kid? Kids need help and affection and care and all the other stuff. They need clothes and shoes and hates and things and someone to complain to when they have a dickish class mate. They need a lot of attention. We can’t just decide we want to feel good about the fact we’re two shmucks who married for convenience and add a child to the mix.” 

“Wife.”

“And another thing.” She began pacing, hands gesturing wildly in her irritation. “I don’t know a damn things about children. I’m not maternal, or kind, or soft.” 

“You are soft.” Vader interrupted, feeling a little bitter. Jifus paused while the insult gestured and then rolled her eyes. 

“Fine! I’m not a mother-type. I don’t try to parent the damn galaxy! I can hardly take care of myself. And you!” She jabbed her entire arm his direction, “What do you know about children? Do you have experience?”

“Yes.” Her argument derailed and Jifus was left gaping. 

“What?” 

“I have raised a child before.” Well, he had hand in raising Ahsoka. If he managed to locate her again he’d ask her to join his crusade. Still, Ahsoka had been his daughter against all odds and all Jedi laws. “And no, I am not an ancient man. You are older than I am.” She blinked and shook her head. 

“The courts would never allow it.” 

“I do have considerable political sway.” 

“You want to strong arm the courts into giving us a kid?” Jifus looked faint. He didn’t move when she slumped against the wall. “What about the child? There are hundreds of children who need parents.”

“Which is why, as those who have the fortunes and ability to care for one should adopt.”

“Are you trying to pull the duty card?” 

“Only if it might work.” 

“Husbaaaannnnddddd.” 

“Wife. If you are genuinely concerned that we could not manage to raise a child then I will drop the topic but if this argument is about your insecurities then I will press the issue.”

“Insecurities?” She snorted, “I have none.”

“Wife.” Vader sighed. This was not what he had been expecting. But then, it must not have been what she had been expecting either. Jifus threw herself into her chair, grumbling. 

“What if they get into a fight at school and one of us has to go pick them up?”

“Then the available parent will go.”

“What if they decide they don’t like us? Or what if they hate us? Or maybe they don’t want to be adopted and they try to run away? What if we can’t be there when they need us? What about our careers? I’m a surgeon in high demand.”

“One of us will remain in the residence and on planet at all times. And you do yourself no credit. I have every confidence you could rise to meet the challenges to parenting.”

“Did you?” Jifus oozed further into the chair with a depressed groan. “I can’t believe you brought this up.” She covered her eyes with a chapped hand and finally looked back at him. “Did you already….chose one?”

“I did.”

“Oh Gods.” 

“Wife.” 

“I’m just a little dizzy. This is a topic I never thought I’d ever have to breach. Have I seen them today?”

“Yes.”

“Boy or girl.” 

“A boy.”

“Name?”

“Luke.” 

“Luke?” She jumped to her feet and joined him at the observation window. “The one with the extra blanket?”

“Yes.”

“We spoke today. He admired my stethoscope.” Jifus sighed, “If we were to do this we’d have to get him to agree. We’re not taking home someone who’d rather not go.”

“As you wish.” She rubbed her temples, “I’m going back to sleep. We’ll talk about this when I’m not sleep deprived.”

“I would rather not wait for eternity to have this conversation.” 

“Ha. Ha. Smartass.” Her muttering died away when she entered the ward and dropped like a stone back onto her own cot.

#$#$3

There weren’t a lot of places in the academy for cadet to relax. Since they were undergoing the rigors of training they spent most of their time working. At the moment most of the cadets were on a forced break while the scandal was sorted. Luke, when he needed space, broke in the Kommandant person garden for a breather. Since the man was the kind to spend his free time bullying students and doing paperwork it was always empty. 

Luke clambered into the only tree there and was settling into his favorite star watching crook when an unexpected voice nearly sent him tumbling toward the ground. 

“Shouldn’t you be in bed, Cadet?” Darth Vader was standing beneath the tree, a frightening specter that prompted Luke to clamber higher once he regained his bearings. Luke held on tight to the smaller branches as he watched the Sith tilt his helmet back to keep the blond in his sights.   
He shook. He knew Vader was on planet but he hadn’t expected to meet the Sith face to face. Certainly not when Luke was in the middle of breaking the rules. Plus, there was the small matter of having knocked over Vader’s personal hanger in order to sic the man on Black Sun. Not that Vader could have known how he’d been set up but Luke wasn’t willing to tempt fate. 

“You could fall, young one.” The Sith rumbled as he turned from Luke and lowered himself onto the bench beneath him. “I would suggest coming down.”

“I’m okay here.” Luke squeaked. 

“Very well.” Darth Vader crossed his ankles and folded his hands on his lap. Two hours passed in relative silence, punctuated only by the respirator and Luke’s own breathing. When Luke was well and truly frozen to the small branches he was forced to admit defeat. Even if he waited until the sun rose he was sure Vader would wait on the bench. Lothal nights were chilly and he was freezing. With a grumble he began to shimmy down the tree and toward the lower branches. “Has the temperature finally fallen enough to shake the credit from the Hutt?” 

Luke blushed, glaring at the back of Vader’s helmet. It gleamed in the dim light of Lothal’s twin moons. The Sith looked like something out of a story book, a giant statue carved from obsidian. From his viewpoint the man was otherworldly, terrifying and gigantic. Luke used to hear stories about beings like Vader. 

“Are you an angel?” He blurted. Luke nearly tumbled from his final perch when the black mask whipped around to face him. For several minutes Vader was silent and Luke knew when the man spoke that he’d confused him.

“Why would you ask that?”

“The deep space pilots talk about them. A bunch of them too.”

“From the moons of Iego?”

“Yeah,” Luke nodded. There was little point in maintain formality with someone you’d robbed and who was watching you hide up a tree. 

“They are the most beautiful being in the galaxy.” Vader retorted, “I do not qualify.” 

“Those are only a few of the angels.” Luke said. “They’re different kinds of angels.” 

“Truly?” 

“Yeah.” Luke dropped onto the grass but stayed behind the trunk, watching the broad back from a safe distance. “Different mythos for everything. Are you going to report me to Aresko or Grint?” 

“Hmmmm. Perhaps but then again, perhaps not. I can be persuaded to not.” 

“If I tell you about the angels?” 

“You are a clever boy.” The words felt double sided. “Yes.” 

“Okay.” Luke despised Aresko and Grint. They liked to pick on him because of his size but he’d be willing to tell a story in exchange to get out of it. He made his way to the stone bench, watching Vader carefully. “What do you want to know?”

“How you could possibly make the mistake of asking if I am an angel?” 

“I was just curious. You look like the stories…sort of.” 

“Indeed?” Luke settled onto the bench, shivering a bit. 

“Yeah. There are a bunch of angels. The moons are each a different angel.” 

“Iego has eight moons.”

“So there are eight angels. The one everyone hears about, the only one that the pirates care about is the Angel of Beauty. That’s the smallest moon. They’re the most beautiful being in the whole galaxy. The next moon is the Angel of Compassion. They doesn’t have to be beautiful; they say they’ll looks like the person you care about most or the person who cares the most about you.” 

Vader wonder what the Angel of Compassion would look like to him. 

“And the next one is the Angel of Passion. Most people think….gross stuff.” Vader nearly laughed at the childish queasiness. “But really Passion is everything. They gets the most offerings and sacrifices. They say their temples are the biggest and the muse of all the builders, the creators, the soldier, the King. They also call them that Patron of Ingenuity and a lot of other stuff.” Vader had never heard of these angels but it made a lot of sense. He had only been nine. “The one that scares everyone is the Angel of Love.”

“I see.”

“Not just mushy love either.”

“And why do they frighten?”

“Because,” Luke shivered, clamping his arms around his torso. His voice dipped lower. “If you hurt, spurn or ignore her gifts or attention then they say the Angel of the Gates will give your soul to them. Then you spend all of the universe suffering. They’re the one who fights the most and the most…intense. Not a lot of people go to those temples.”

“Are you frightened of this angel?” 

“A little. I’m….I’m afraid that I’ve hurt someone too and that they’ll be mad at me when I die.” 

“And if you haven’t?” Luke shrugged. He had to force himself to keep his teeth from chattering but he cried out in surprise when Vader stood. In swift motion the man had unclasped his cape and draped it over Luke. It was warm, blessedly so. Luke burrowed into it before he even realizes what he’d done. Ignoring the embarrassment the turned his cheeks red, Luke nodded his thanks. “Now, there are four remaining angels.”

“The next two are the same size. They say their equal. The Angel of the Heavens and the Angel of the Underworld. They both guard souls. I don’t know much about them. They have equal sized temples. Like, perfectly equal ones. Nothing is done to one that isn’t done to the other. You reminded me of the Angel of the Underworld. They care about all of the people they take in. One or the either. I don’t know who goes where but supposedly everyone goes there.” 

“And the final two.” 

“These are the biggest and they are the same size.” Luke watched the twin moons of Lothal, thinking, “The Angel of Life and the Angel of Death. A lot of people, the pirates, make shrines to both. Like, you don’t just honor Life and you honor Death too. They’re in a synchronized orbit that shouldn’t exist but does.” 

“A scientific impossibility?”

“Yeah, the gravitational pull of Iego should have put them off but they’re still there.” 

“The Angels protect everyone and all the things and all are equal on their moons. The temple acolytes have to let everyone visit. Pirates don’t mess with Iego at all, no one does. I’ve heard there hasn’t been a war there since the Primordial Ages.”

“I have never heard of this primordial age.”

“Oh,” Luke burrowed further into the black armorweave. The giddiness in his chest buoying his feelings and excitement. “This is probably the coolest part. The Primordial Age was way back when. There’s an asteroid belt around Iego made of moon rocks and stuff. That was the first moon of Iego. The Angel of Destruction. They say, in all the stories, that Iego was lonely. She or he, built a companion from themselves. Since Iego was creation.”

“The Angel of Creation?”

“No, just Creation. Anyway, the new moon was beautiful, amazing and Iego was happy. So was the new moon and then Iego built more. The next ones were wonderful and then the next ones and then the last four were made. So Iego had nine companions. This was before they got their names too.”

“What lead to the first moons destruction?”

“Well, Creation had to have balance. They didn’t understand it at the time. So when Angel of Destruction fell to nature, they built soldiers to go down and destroy Iego. Creation built their own soldiers and began to fight the invaders. The other moons were confused and frightened so they removed themselves from Iego and the first moon. Life and Death were dragged in first. They worked for one or the other. No one knows if Life worked for Creation or Destruction and the same for Death. Then, when so many soldiers died, Heavens and Underworld began to herald the souls to their homes, protecting them from Creations and Destructions war. The four youngest managed to stay out of it until the very end. Anyway,” Luke’s voice dropped again. “The war had to end. They always do. Since Creation couldn’t destroy the same way as Destruction could, there wasn’t much they could do. But, in the course of the war, the first moon began to die. And, in the final battle it was destroyed into millions of pieces. Creation pulled Destruction into its orbit and named the other moons. Life and Death were given duties, sacred duties. And then the two that had protected the souls from being forced to continue in the war were given duties too.” 

“To protect the souls for eternity.”

“Yeah, all of them, even now.”

“And what of the four youngest?”

“Well, since Creation couldn’t destroy, they merged the soldiers and bestowed on them the attributes of both Creation and Destruction. Then, the four youngest were tasked with taking these attributes and protecting their purest forms and to protect those that displayed them. But Creation made a mistake.” Luke stared at Vader with a very serious expression. “First, the soldiers for the war were slaves. Second, the war was now in their bones. All of them remembered it. Even the youngest ones. Third, by merging the two, Creation and Destruction, they had built something that was both. And guess what?” Luke grinned when Vader leaned down. “They were the first humans. Even though the First Moon had been destroyed…Destruction wasn’t really gone. So when Creation discovered that a mistake had been made they were forced to admit that the universe needed to be balanced, the humans were left alone. Plus, the only thing that could have destroyed them was without concentrated power.”

“Indeed.” It was a fascinating tale. Luke could have told it better but Vader was impressed none the less. “So humans are balance?”

“That’s what they say. They honor Life and Death but they’re children of Creation and Destruction. They accept the guardianship of the Angels that keep the gates but humans were built as slaves and once they knew freedom they would never accept another master. They,” Luke yawned, cutting off his words, shaking for the sudden motions. 

“You are tired, young one. As fascinating as these tales are you must go to bed.” 

“I could tell it better,” Luke yawned again, “The storyteller I heard it from did a really good job.” 

“I am sure.” There were elements that Luke obviously tried to portray but he had missed a few plot points and he was obviously getting drowsy. “Come, young one. Your dormitory beckons.”

“Alright.” Luke stood, pulling the cape around himself and followed Vader from the gardens. He could go longer but he really was cold and tired. “Are you going to?”

“No, you have earned your protection.” Luke chuckled, “But I do wish to speak to you tomorrow.” 

“You know the oddest thing about the Moons of Iego?” Luke continued as if he hadn’t heard him. “The story isn’t clear cut. It’s not like the other legends that are all black and white and stuff. With heroes and villains and good and evil, it’s kind of a messy story. Somethings don’t have answers and others have a bunch of them.”

“I noticed.” Vader ushered the boy down the stark white halls, avoiding troopers and agents alike. “Come.” When he’d pushed Luke into his dormitory he did it seconds before Aresko and Grint came ambling down the halls. 

“Lord Vader!” They stiffened fearfully and saluted but Vader ignored them. He made his way down to Lady Vader to report the successful conversation. It was only when Jifus wondered out-loud, did he realize he had left his cape with Luke.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I bullshit the moon of Iego thing. I think it's obvious. But I like it.


	10. Overheard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vader begins his manipulation of Luke and Dr. Lady worries alot.

As intimidating as Vader looked with his cape he was somehow more frightening without it. The lines of his body and armor more defined and illuminated beneath the weak Lothal morning sun. Kallus wondered where Vader’s cape was. 

“My lord?” The Sith did not stir from where he was sitting. His hands were on his wide spread knees and his ankles were crossed. The man looked a little absurd in such a delicate pose but Kallus wasn’t going to say a word. 

“What is it?’

“I was wondering, sir, where I will be placed after this assignment.” 

“You will be placed where I command,” Vader intoned, not turning toward the agent. 

“Yes, milord but.” 

“There is nothing else to discuss, Agent Kallus.” He stiffened as the short tone. “A meeting will commence shortly. A private meeting.” 

“Aye, sir.” He saluted and made for Tove’s office to deliver the news. He passed Lady Vader ambling by with her head in a datapad. 

#$#$#

“I didn’t mean to keep it.” Shortly after Kallus left, Luke appeared around a corner.

“It is no trouble.” The Sith nodded to the bench beside him. “Come, young one. Sit.”

“Alright.” Vader kept his movements to the minimum, unwilling to frighten the boy off. He was still skittish around him, rightfully so. The cape was folded neatly and balanced in the boys spindly arms. Luke hopped onto the bench and passed it over. “Why’d you let me keep it?”

“I believe you had more use of it than I.” He replied mildly, taking the cape with one hand and draping it over a knee. “If I recall you do not seem well suited to the cold.”

“I’m not.” This morning Luke was wrapped in a much heavier coat with his boots bulging from thick socks and poorly tucked in pants. “I don’t like it at all and we have to get up every morning at five to go on runs. It’s so cold when we do that and even running doesn’t get me warm enough.”

“I see. Are you not supposed to be in class?”

“I was supposed to be but Doctor Lady was yelling at the commanders a whole bunch this morning. Last I heard she was writing a new schedule for us to fit our ages and stuff.” 

“And what do you think of this doctor?” 

“I like her,” Luke chirped before subsiding from embarrassment. He couldn’t be excited and cheerful around Vader. There was probably a rule against it. “She’s cool and she’s got a stethoscope.” 

“Is possessing a stethoscope the only requirement to make young ones like someone?”

“No.” Luke blurted, “But she let me use it and she makes these sarcastic comments and really hilarious observations. Plus, she tells the funniest stories. Like the one where she and her husband couldn’t agree what to paint the walls and they ended up pink while she was at a conference. That was hilarious.” Luke drummed his heels against the stone bench. “The other night when I was all cold in the med bay she gave me a second blanket which was super nice of her. The other adults here don’t do that.” 

“Indeed.” Vader felt genuine amusement. It seemed that for all of the boy’s criminal accomplishments he was still very much a child. 

“Thank golly I’m going to a different academy.” Luke said, rubbing his hand together for warmth and grinning when Vader looked at him. “My social worker said I should probably get to a better place for education and medical care. They’re think Corellia.” Corellia was a good place for children to vanish into the woodwork. If Luke made it to Corellia then he’d never be seen again. 

“Indeed? You must be missing your friends when you are transferred, you’re file indicates this is hardly the first time you’ve been pulled out of an academy after only a few weeks.” Luke was too experienced to shriek or run or to be bashful. He didn’t show his panic when he nodded in agreement. “Surly you wish for a more stable environment.”

“I dunno. You don’t really make friends in the Stormtrooper corps.” He rubbed the back of his head, “There’s too much work to do and studying and then they don’t want you to talk to one another.” 

“I see.” Vader hadn’t called Luke here but he’d had a feeling that the boy would show up if he went to the garden. “If you are indeed a ward of the state then do you not wish to be adopted?”

Luke couldn’t help himself, experience and training made no different, he burst into laughter. He only sobered when the terrifying blank mask turned to him. 

“I’m sorry,” he clamped his teeth down to swallow the last of his giggles. “That doesn’t happen in this galaxy. People don’t take in kids, they kick them out. No one in the galaxy helps anyone out.” Luke didn’t try to sound bitter but it had probably come out that way. He knew Vader was dangerous and one of the main problems the galaxy faced. Luke wondered if Gohan had ever considered turning her wrath and cunning on him instead of her manipulations. If he would be the target instead of the tool?   
Vader was silent for a few cycles of breathing before he shifted his weight on the bench. “Would you wish to be adopted though?”

“It wouldn’t happen.” Luke folded in on himself, propping his chin in his palms and sighing. 

“That is not what I asked, child.” 

“I guess.” Luke wondered what his parents had been like. He wondered that a lot when he didn’t have much else to think about. “I don’t remember my family so it’s not like I’ve got something to compare it to. I don’t think I could settle down anyway.” 

Vader pondered the information carefully. The boy was a wanderer, drawn to the stars and adventure. But his force signature told him that the boy wanted a family but was unwilling to admit it. 

“I don’t think I could find some parents that were like me.” Luke drooped, “They always seem to be the…average type.” 

A thief would never fit into a family of average citizens but he would be a nice addition to a Sith Lord and an insomniac surgeon. Both of them war veterans and both of them still in their relative mental and physical prime. They would not expect complacency and total obedience; in fact, they might be bored with it. Jifus had agreed to adopt the boy if he gave his agreement. All he had to do now was coerce the right answer out of the boy. 

He was about to speak again when he heard the familiar voices of the two men in charge of Stormtrooper cade training. 

“He must have gone this way. There’s no way for cadets to leave the academy.” Luke gasped, though he should never fear the two bumbling fools, and dove for cover. Vader whipped out his cape until it hung over the empty portion of the bench and his right knee. The boy vanished beneath the black fabric. “We’ll find him and when we do he’ll get extra chores. He’s never around when he’s needed.”

“I know just what to do with a brat like.” The two stopped their stomping when they rounded the corner to see Vader sitting in relative silence. “Ah. Arhk! Lord Vader.” They saluted clumsily. 

“Commanders.” He didn’t bother looking their direction. 

“Ah. Lord Vader.” Grint dithered, looking for an escape. “We….”

“What do you want?” The Sith demanded, acutely aware of Luke crouched beneath the stone bench, unmoving. 

“Ah, we’re looking for a cadet that is skipping their work.” Aresko tugged his collar; sure he could feel the phantom grip around his neck. “Have you seen?”

“Leave.” Vader ordered, moving his hands just enough that the motion frightened both of the men away. A few babbled assurances and pathetic salutes later the men had vanished. He noted how they had crushed a good number of bushes on their way in an out of the garden.

“Thanks.” Luke re-appeared, crawling out of his hiding place with bright grin. There tinge of mischievousness that had made him such a target on Nar Shadda was back in full force. The boy was truly a thief. “Why’d you help me?”

“I find those two abhorrent to the entire Stormtrooper corps. They are an insult to the Empire.” 

“Then why don’t you fire them?” The boy brushed off his clothes looking genuinely curious. “You’re in charge of everyone, even me if you want to get technical. So can’ t you just toss them out?” 

“I could.” 

“Then why don’t you?”

“Are you in the habit of always questioning your elders, young one?” Luke huffed, crossing his arms.

“I figured as long as I can find someone willing to answer my questions I ought to.” His blue eyes were challenging and he shuffled his feet, “Are you mad?”

“I am not. I find your inquisitiveness refreshing. My wife would classify it as ‘adorable’ but as a Sith I am above such sentiment.” 

“Right.” Luke rolled his eyes and froze a second later when common sense knocked a hammer around his head. It reminded him, forcibly, of who he was dealing with. He’d just used Darth Vader like a human shield. He’d been sassing Darth Vader! He offered a weak grin and inched away. “I’m just going to.”

“Leave?” Luke jumped at the voice. Doctor Lady had ambled up sometime in the last few minutes. Her tilted smile was fixed into place and her eyes were bright with humor. “I just saw a 12 year old sass my husband. This was just getting good. Don’t stop because your sense of self-preservation kicked in.”

“Wait….” He squinted, remembering the bored face he’d seen surrounded by bitter politicians months ago. “You married him?”

“Yep.” She popped the ‘p’ and strolled up, hands stuffed into her lab coat. “What of it?

“He did not remember,” Vader said mildly.

“Huh.” Luke felt more than a little trapped, looking for an exit or an escape. “You’re supposed to be taking a nap with the rest of your hell rising cohorts. What are you doing here?”  
“I don’t need a nap.” Luke protested, “What? Do I look like a five year old?” He regretted the words the instant he’d said them.

“Well…”

“One might consider you to look.” Vader and the Doctor seemed to exchange a glance, “Youthful.” 

“Besides, you’re still not healthy which means all of you and yours will be taking naps and stuff until I’m happy with your charts. You’re still behind on a lot of stuff, kid.” Luke opened his mouth and snapped it shut. “Oh come on, when I was your age I’d’ve killed for a nap.”

“You were in med-school.” Luke grumbled, watching the woman plop onto the stone bench beside her husband. “That makes more sense.” 

“Kids,” she shook her head, gray hair bobbing her ears, “Don’t know what they’ve got till it’s gone. One day you’ll be thanking me.”

“Not today.” Luke said, “Besides, Aresko and Grint just came through here saying I was hiding from chores and practice.”

“I sent them on a wild nexu chase,” Doctor Lady waved a hand and seemed to ooze against the bench. “They’re stupid enough to believe anything if it comes high up enough. Seriously, sleep does wonders for your body. It’ll help with everything and the rest of your classmates are ecstatic over getting decent amounts of sleep. I know I’d be.”

“Perhaps it is not the sleep that concerns the boy,” Vader interjected, folding his arms over his chest. “Rather, it is his considerable pride that keeps him from accepting the truth of his situation.”

“That he’s a kid who needs a nap?” Luke didn’t bother with annoyance at the Lady’s wink and settled his glare on the Sith.

“Perhaps you should heed the good doctor’s advice.” 

“I’m fine.” 

“According to every medical chart I have on file you’re really not. Trust me, I know what I’m looking for. You might be able to function and function pretty well but I know tired when I see tired.” 

“I don’t need any more sleep.” Luke wondered if there had ever been a more bizarre conversation in the galaxy. A sith a doctor and a thief all arguing about sleep. “I’m okay, really. I am.”

“If your fine then okay.” Jifus raised her hands, “You’re fine. I’ll let you get off without a nap that you actually need. Just come with me to get a blood test done. I want to see how your immune system is picking up. It should be getting better after the last few days of diet additions.” Luke had been around military folk long enough to know when people were issuing orders and when they were issuing orders that sounded like suggestions. 

“Fine,” He kicked the dirt, “But then I’ve got to get to class ‘cause I know I’ve got on in an hour or so.”

“That’s fine.” Doctor Lady hopped to her feet, “To the med bay.”

#$#$#

“A most successful campaign.” Vader leaned over his wife’s shoulder, admiring her handiwork. “Well done.” Alone in the med bay, Luke was sprawled ungainly over an empty bed. His eyes were flickering open and shut as he visibly fought against the onslaught of sleep. 

“I didn’t even drug him,” Jifus whispered, wriggling smugly in her lab coat. “He’s just been sitting there with nothing to do but read charts. Plus the magical effects of hot chocolate.” 

“Indeed.” Vader had to applaud her thinking; the little thief was only barely holding onto consciousness and had been grumbling audibly until five minutes ago. It was amazing what comfort and boredom could do to a person.

“And he really does need the sleep,” She shoved the chart in front his mask, “Take a look at that. Someone’s not been taking care of any of these kids. They’re all messed up and this is pretty disturbing. I know Pryce went away for funneling kids into sweatshops but this can’t be much better. Something needs to be done.”

“Something will be done,” he promised. His master could not get angry at him for bowing to his wife’s wishes. He would only find amusement in his work. 

“I give him three minutes,” She wrapped her arms around her chest. “He’ll be out like a light. I’m actually surprised he lasted this long.”

“As am I.” He folded his arms.

“Hold on,” Jifus winked at him, “I’ve got an idea.” 

#$#$3

Luke could remember a good number of occasions when he had been this tired. When his limbs were heavy and he could feel the rush of blood in his heart, the fabric against his skin and the light hitting his eyes. It wasn’t terrible but he was wishing heartily he could just go to sleep. He’d caught onto the Doctor’s plan halfway through the mug of hot chocolate and the boring recitation of his physical status. He’d be mad if he had the energy. 

“You cheated.” He mumbled when the Doctor appeared at his side. Her smile was soft but devious. “I know what you did.” Luke yawned and unconsciously snuggled closer to the warmth of the bed. “Jerk.”

“You’re cute, kid.” Doctor Lady hefted a blanket. “And I’m not sure why our conversations always end up with you sleep but I’m hoping that ends pretty soon.” 

“Fine.” Luke blinked heavily, yawning again. She unfolded the blanket and tucked it around him. Luke hated how fragile he felt when he met her gray eyes. Small and delicate, supported by the care of someone else. He hadn’t needed any of that in forever, even from his own crew, it hurt to see it again. 

“Come on, Luke.” His heart rate spike when her hand landed gently on his forehead to sweep back the blond fringe. “Win me a bet.”

He puffed out a breath of laughter, turning his head enough to bury his face into a pillow. “No.” 

“Come on, Luke. Don’t you like me?” 

“No and I’m not tired.” 

“A lie if I ever heard one.” She patted his shoulder a last time before ambling from the room. The lights went down a second later and Luke knew he had lost. 

$#$#$3

He woke to voices at low murmur in the background; a distant sound without distinction and character. Luke, still sleepy and clinging the fuzzy dreams he couldn’t remember, tried his best to ignore it.

“Did you even bring up the topic?’

“I did.” Luke dimly identified the voice of Vader and the doctor. “He only laughed.”

“Maybe we went about it wrong. I mean, normal 13 year olds don’t need or want naps. Or shots or telling stories about angels. Do you think we went a little overboard?”

“I could not say.” Luke shuffled a bit beneath the toasty warm blankets. 

“How do you even bring up a conversation like this? There are no helpful articles on the holo net.” 

“Wife.” Slowly the cobwebs were clearing themselves out. Luke was waking up bit by bit, enough to catch onto a conversation threat he thought he’d never hear. 

“Look, you asked him if he’d like to be adopted and how long until he puts the pieces together that it’s really both of us wanting to ask him. He’s smart enough to catch on.” There was a quiet shuffling of booted feet and he heard the doctor sigh. 

“You have not changed your mind?”

“No, but we have to somehow convince a Stormtrooper cadet that he can get adopted.”

“He did find the idea fairly ludicrous.” 

“I know; which worries me.” Luke was awake now, his mind spinning from astonishment. This was a hell of a conversation to overhear. His breathing was soft and even and there wasn’t anything to alert the adults he’d been listening. He kind of wanted to make a break for it anyway. “What if he says no?” Vader did not reply. Luke, taking a chance, rolled over and watched the scene between his lashes. 

The scene was curiously intimate. Jifus was holding one hand to her chest and the other rested in her husband’s hands. Vader was standing close, almost protective, with his other hand resting on her shoulder. Luke wondered if anyone else had seen them like this. 

“He should be waking up any minute. Now, I’ve got to make sure he gets to his class on time. I’ll see you at dinner?”

“Yes.” Husband and wife separated and Luke had to spend the next few minutes pretending to wake up while hiding his swirling shock.

There was no doubt about it now, Luke had to leave Lothal.


	11. That Didn't Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke's plan doesn't work and he decides to make a few changes. Gohan talks to her employer

Luke was already running through his contingencies when Doctor Lady, released him to classes. He offered a weak smile and wave and she gave an enthusiastic smile back. A few minutes later he was sliding into his astrophysics class with a note and taking his usual seat. 

There were four plans he could use, the back routes to escape the compound of the academy. A way to get of Lothal was simple once he was out of here. Except that the adults were now paying more attention to the cadets. They watched the students carefully to make sure they were complying with the standards that Lady Vader has set for them. No one wanted to have the woman catch a mistake of theirs. 

Luke could work around the obsessive watching; he would manage the surveillance and everything else. What he didn’t know how to manage was the idea that someone wanted to adopt him. He’d pulled similar jobs and no one had ever looked twice at him. It was scary. Vader had money and power and lots of both. He was feared the galaxy over, he was a living waking nightmare. 

Though the grifter had never put any stock in fearing the Sith. He’d robbed him blind once and being bed-wettingly terrified of the mark wasn’t good for business. The man might know he was the thief was using him to get at the rest of his crew. This was plausible but the only people who had their names was a rebel leader, a hutt, a pirate, a long-gone senator and….Gentleman. 

Luke doodled on his classwork, thinking. Gentleman had all but vanished once they’d left Nar Shadda. He’d played for their names for no solid reason. Karrde had played to but considering how much he’d lost at the game he wouldn’t sell them for anything less than at least 16% income. Mire was clumsy and stupid but she wouldn’t blab in an interest of not seizing on her clansman fury and Mothma. Mothma was an idealist running a poor, straggling Rebellion. She didn’t have the funding to find them but the Alliance would keep a sharp eye out if Luke and his cohorts ever surfaced.

According to Gohan agents from each group had showed up on Nar Shadda just days after the card-game. Gentleman was the first and the only one that interested his boss. He was the unknown variable and those were dangerous to crews like theirs. Then Gohan’s contacts had seen agents of Mire, Mothama, and Karrde all running around Nar Shadda. 

Gentleman. They needed to know Gentleman. Luke scribbled a few lines onto this assignment and hoped Gohan was going to investigate him. 

$#$#4

Gohan was investigating Gentleman. After her searches through the underworld turned up empty, she made for the one place she might find the answer.

Tatooine. 

In the years since the destruction of Jabba the Hutt, his syndicates hold on the planet had vanished. A slave revolution had taken place and had passed by unnoticed by relatively few beyond the outer time. Still, revolution fever was spreading. Burning like a low ash, waiting for a log to set aflame. Waiting for someone to blow them into an infero. Waiting for the opportunity to deliver all from bondage. 

“You haven’t visited me in several months.” Gohan wasn’t one to get nervous. She prided herself on this ability. “I heard of your exploits, I am impressed.” 

“Thanks.” In a dusty corner of the former slave quarters lived the man who governed Tatooine. Gohan knew he had other jobs, many of them were probably related to retrieval operations on core worlds. Also speaking to foreign heads of state and building new lives for his people and the refugees. Not to mention raising a horde of small children that had attached themselves to him. The human was kind, compassionate, caring, and gentle; despite the obvious hardness of him. If he had any significant human failing Gohan had yet to see it. 

“What did Aphra stand to gain from this latest con?” Kister Banai smile when he handed her a chipped mug of steaming tea. Gohan accepted, hunching her shoulders as she rocked gently back onto her mat. 

“There was cache of weapons,” The thief replied, blowing on her tea. Kister sipped his, nodding. As humans went he wasn’t the darkest but he was a dozen or so shades from pale. His hair was not as dark as Gohan’s, a softer brown than totally black. A few scars were scattered about his forehead and chin. The traditional robes and wrappings of a Tatooine native in addition with the single piece of jewelry gave him an almost otherworldly look. It actually reminded Gohan of Gentleman. “I can’t do good all the time, my crew would get suspicious.”

“You could tell them about your activities, Gohan. I am sure they would be receptive.” 

“The less people that know about my involvement in your crusade the better. Running the nastiest crew has its perks. Mostly, people don’t ask me if I’m donating money to charity.”

“I’ve heard donating money is an excellent tax-write off,” Kister said.

“If I paid taxes I’m sure it would be.” Gohan shuffled in her seat. “But I’m here because there’s a new player in the game. At least, I think he is. No one knows anything about him.”

“Who is it?” 

“He goes by the name Gentleman.” Gohan passed over a datachip and pad. Kister opened the files. “Obviously an alias. He popped up just three months after our job with Black Sun at a high stakes sabacc game. Apparently on the hunt for my crew. His agents showed up on Nar Shadda a day or so later and I sent Luke in with Doora as backup. He did…something to Luke. Nearly made him give up the rest of our names and compromise himself, Doora escalated the situation with some blastefire to give Luke a chance to get away. In the chase we identified about 14 people wearing his colors. None of these people have rung any bells in any system I’ve run them through. He seems to have enough money to play in a game with Mire, Mothma and Karrde so I don’t think he’s gunning for our stuff.”

“What are his motivations?”

“I’m not sure,” Gohan rubbed her chin before propping it up on her palm. “He’s smart and clever and he’s obviously got the loyalty of his people. He won a slave named Vasma from Orn Free Taa, my efforts to locate her are turning up dry.”

“Vasma?” The human frowned and turned to the image of the red-skinned twi’lek standing beside the robed figure. “This is Vasma?”

“Yep, gone like stardust. Vanished into thin air after Gentleman vanished off Nar Shadda.”

“What else do you know?” Kister’s thoughtful frown was concerning as far as Gohan knew but she continued on. 

“His crew is only humans, ex-military or still military. Good shots, nearly managed to take out Doora. They have one ship, a big one capable of holding about 40 people full time. They’re well-funded too. I’d say there were crew like mine but…I’m pretty sure they aren’t.”

“Vasma is here.” Kister said.

“What?” Gohan started, nearly spilling her tea over herself. “What do you mean?”

“She’s here on Tatooine. Brought in a month ago as a refugee, a former slave to Orn Free Taa before he went missing.”

“She could be a spy for Gentleman. If he knows there is a place where freed persons go then then he could be waiting to gather enough evidence to turn it over to the Empire.” 

“Or he might want to help.”

“We need to talk to her.” Gohan said, “If she knows who Gentleman is then we can figure out what he really wants with us.”

“Gohan.”

“There are too many unknown variables.” The blue alien said, “Who is Gentleman and what does he want? Why would he free Vasma and bring here here? What does he stand to gain; does he know about your operations? Is he connected to the Empire? Kister!”

Kister remained silent, watching Gohan’s rapid fire questions with infuriating patience. He waited until she’d run out of steam and set his cup down. “She came along the Naboo route.” 

“Okay?”

“You’re correct about many things, Gohan. We need to investigate Gentleman, discover who he is and what he wants. Find out if he is a danger to our work if nothing else.” 

“Alright.” Gohan drooped, “I’m picking up Luke off Lothal in three days.”

“Vader is on Lothal at the moment,” Kister observed, pressing his hands together and frowning at the files still. “Be careful.”

“I know, I’ll be careful. Besides, Luke is just a small kid; no one is going to pay attention to him. He’s just another cadet. When he gets back we’re going to pick up that investigation, we’ll lay low for a while.” 

“That would be wise; Vader was much infuriated by your job.” Gohan grinned to herself and ducked away from the human’s playful swipe. “Do not gloat, Gohan. Twice the pride, double the fall.”

“I’m not going to get arrogant, boss.” She said. “Don’t you trust me?” 

“I trust you to do what is smartest for yourself, Gohan. I do not trust you beyond that.”

“Well, it would be dumb to look at a nexu and call it a Loth-cat. I’m greedy and terrible and you should never trust me.” She grumbled when Kister only laughed. “What?”

“When do you plan to leave Tatooine?” 

“Soon, I guess.” She said quietly, “Do you want me to leave?”

“Of course not.” The two paused when someone knocked on the door. “Yes?”

“Kister,” a soft female voice echoed from the outside, “The geological survey is in. We have water predictions.” 

“Thank you.” Kister stood and opened the door. A thin, scarred Rodian was standing outside, “Would you like to come in?” 

“Uh.” 

“We’re having tea.”

“Alright.” Gohan rolled onto her back as the two began to converse in the language that most of Tatooine seemed to know. She knew secrets and she knew sacred secrets and how not to bother with them. Her naturally curious mind would usually dig into the million curiosities of Kister and his organization. She was a problem solver and having a puzzle sitting across the table while she couldn’t bother him was agony. Still, she managed to keep Kister’s peace. If not for the professional courtesy but also because Tatooine was lousy with vengeful ex-slaves who would defend their leader. 

Freedom, by the meaning of the former slaves, was a lot more frightening to Gohan than any other interpretation. It was far more sacred and meaningful and it was much bigger than she had ever thought. That, along with Kister’s diamond hard gentleness, scared her. Helping fund the slave revolution was the best she was going to manage. It let her maintain the comfortable illusions she wanted to keep. 

 

The earliest parts of the morning, when the sun was only just rising above the Lothal grasses and turning the sky into pink and yellow, was the best time to leave. At that point the Academy still hadn’t woken up and anyone that was awake was freezing cold and/or too tired to notice him sneaking out. With his bug out back packed and his uniform tossed down the incinerator, Luke was out of the Academy and mingling with the early morning crowds of the market within an hour. 

He was just easing his way past the pastry stand, a hot meliroon tart clenched in his teeth, when a too familiar voice chimed out. 

“What the blazes do you think you’re doing here?” Luke froze and he turned around to see Doctor Lady standing in front of the stand holding fabrics. Beside, wrapped in a peculiar shade of deep green, was Vader. He blinked once. Twice. How had he not seen them? Lady Vader’s expression was one of total disbelief, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. 

“It would appear.” The modulated voice Luke was so used to hearing was gone to be replaced by a softer tone. “That he is shopping.” 

“Uh.” Luke reached for an answer. There was nothing. 

“I….” Doctor Vader looked at the brightening sky and then shook her head. “Well, we’re shopping too, want to join us?” 

“Sure?” Luke adjusted his backpack and swallowed his bite of fruit tart. He wasn’t sure how he was going to get out of this one. “What are you looking for?”

“Spices actually and some other stuff.” The doctor shrugged when Luke fell into step on her right side. He avoided looking at Vader for an extended period of time. 

“The spices are over there,” Luke said while pointing to another section of the market. “Lothal doesn’t have a lot of natural spices though, the weather is all wrong. The ones that are here are from roots so I don’t know if they’re any good.” He blushed under the identical stare that was directed his way. “What? It’s in all the books.”

“Right.” Lady Vader yawned and pulled her coat closer to her shoulders. Between the three of them they made it through the growing crowds with little trouble. “So this isn’t the first time you’ve snuck out?”

Luke busied himself with eating his tart as slowly as possible. 

“Deflection only works so long,” The Sith said. Luke couldn’t read his reaction. The man was cutting through the crowds, his green cloak flowing behind him. If Luke didn’t know the outline of his armor he would never had guess that Vader was beneath the green. 

“Yep.” Luke agreed and took another bite as he dodged the swinging arms of a tall wookie stomping by. 

“This solidifies the fact that both Aresko and Grint are idiots,” Vader mused, “How did you manage to sneak from the academy?”

“Cadet secret,” Luke blurted and winced. 

“If we run into your classmates I’m not going to take them all shopping,” The doctor mused, turning toward stall with dozens of jars filled with a thick, clear fluid. “What’s this?”

“Honey from a ground bee nest,” The stall owner said, “It is excellent for baking, cooking, teas and caf.”

“Caf?” She leaned closer to a jar. “You can put this in caf?” 

“I will remind you that you already have a crippling caf addition. Finding new ways to indulge your habit is not wise.” 

Luke bit down a laugh when Doctor Vader turned around to stare her husband straight in the eyes. Picking up the chosen bottle, she shoved it into duffle bag and passed over the necessary credits all while maintaining eye contact. 

“I do what I want!” She exclaimed and stomped toward another stall. Vader hurried after her.

“There are other ways to be contrary for the sake of being contrary. Ways that do not involve making a spectacle of yourself.” 

“Ha! Then it wouldn’t be any fun!” She winked a Luke, who grinned and looked away. “And I don’t have a caf addiction! I can stop anytime I want.” 

“You could not stop if your very life depended on it.” 

“Sure I could.”

“You could not.” 

“You have no faith in me, husband.” Luke inched toward an alley way and nearly cursed when a heavy hand landed on his shoulder and guided him back to Vader’s side. Still the man argued. 

“I have no faith in your self-control in this matter, no.” Vader agreed easily, “You are a doctor; you know the results of long-term indulgent in caf.”

“Ah, who cares? The morning fuel I drink is nothing compared to your soldiers. Compared to them I drink mud.”

“I do not care about them.” 

“Gee.” 

“What’s your name?” Luke piped up, suddenly curious. He couldn’t remember from the old wedding broadcast and he didn’t really want to hear any more arguing. Vader still had a grip on his shoulder and he was not letting go, Luke wasn’t in the mood for witty banter. 

“What?’ The lady stopped, nearly sending a twi’lek running into her. 

“You’re actual name. I don’t know it and called you the Lady sounds weird in my head.” 

“Jifus,” The woman blinked and glanced at her husband, “My name is Jifus.” The wicked grin followed a moment later. “And that’s Kit.” She jabbed a thumb Vader’s direction. 

“Absolutely not!” 

“He is,” She shrugged, “I just can’t call him Lord in our own home and his name is just so…formal. So I’m working through a few nicknames so find something I like.” 

“Not that one. I will tolerate this nickname business but not these infantile.”

“I think it fits,” Jifus turned about on her heel and began to walk backwards. “Come on, Kit. It’s a great fit.”

“No.” 

“Yes.”

“Absolutely not.” 

“Eh. I’ll work you around to it.” Jifus winked a Luke. 

“I think it works.” Luke joined in and shuffled his features to hide his laughter, “Makes you less scary when you’re out and about. Besides, who knows who could overhear your real name.” 

“I did not ask for your input, Luke.” The thief shrugged under the heavy hand but shot the man a cheeky grin. 

“I think it’s cute.” 

“HA! That’s two against one!”

“Child, remember that you are already in trouble. Continued agreement with my wife will only worsen your coming discipline.” 

“But it is.” Luke said, hoping if he dug a hole deep enough that they’d forget about adopting him. “Come on. Kit just sounds so much friendlier. I bet Kit helps little old ladies cross the road.” 

“Stop.” 

“Does he also make dinner?” Luke sidled closer to the Sith, eyes shining and giving the man a sickly sweet smile. “When the lady comes home from the operating room?” Luke was dimly aware of Jifus clutching her stomach and wheezing. 

“Enough.” Vader commanded and clamped a hand over Luke’s mouth. He smelled worn leather and ozone. “You will not joke at my expense.” 

“I don’t see why not?” Jifus staggered up straight, “We’re the only ones here and it’s just too easy. Normally that would make it less entertaining but it just gets funnier every time.” Vader did not speak and he didn’t move, turning into an irritated statue that seemed to be glaring blankly at the surgeon. “What? Oh come on. It’s funny.” 

“It is not.” He removed his hand from Luke’s mouth, the blond kept his laughing quiet. “Come along and finish whatever tedious task you have from to do, wife.” 

“Alright, alright.” Luke slipped out of Vader’s slackening grasp. “Come on blondie, I need some spices.” 

It was difficult to escape. As the sun continued to rise and the morning shifted to afternoon, Luke found it increasingly impossible to leave. As the day wore on he really didn’t want to leave either. They were compelling, confusing and fascinating. But mostly he didn’t feel odd when he was with them. Somehow, sitting between them while they bickered of the use of the four offices of their residence felt perfectly natural. 

That was what terrified him most. 

“Why are you hiding from your parents?” Luke had heard the other boy sneak up on him. They were both perched on top of a roof, looking down on a mechanics shop. There, Vader was haggling over a shiny engine part Luke would probably want to inspect later. 

“They aren’t my parents.” He turned around to see the other boy. He was taller than Luke, dark skin and hair with brilliant blue eyes. His orange jumpsuit looked oversized and dirty, there was a strange piece of machinery strapped around his wrist. “Who are you?”

“You’re like me.” The boy said, his gaze was focused, “You’re dressed up but I can see a loth rat a mile away. Who are you and why are you with them?”

“I’m Luke.”

“Ezra.” The boy grunted, his arms hadn’t uncrossed. 

“Ezra?”

“Yeah? What of it?” 

“Nothing,” Luke copied the other boy, glowering. “How long have you been out here?”

“Long enough. You?” 

“I don’t remember.” Gohan might have rescued him from the gutter but Luke would always have the frightened, screaming boy hiding somewhere inside. “Why did you come talk to me?”

“Because I can see a Loth rat,” Ezra snorted, “And you’re acting strange around them.” 

“Really?” He glanced back at the Vader’s. They were so real and so strange and the ease at which he knew this was scary. He knew that if Lord Vader wanted to press the issue there was no adoption agency in the galaxy that would turn him down. They didn’t need to entertain Luke like they had today; they could have forced his hand and taken him from Lothal. Even if he continued to drag his feet that was probably what they would end up doing. 

They didn’t need his consent. 

“I know someone who can help you,” Luke said suddenly, yanking on an idea suddenly and pulling it close. He surveyed it, made a few edits and threw it out there. “Someone who can get you off the streets, they can help you?”

“What are you talking about?” Ezra demanded, his hands settled on his hips.

“I have to leave,” Lue pulled off his backpack. “There’s credits, Hutt and Imperial, plus supplies. Two days from now at the spaceport a ship is going to come in. A passenger will respond to the passcode, ‘who can direct me to the market?’ They’ll help you. Tell them Luke sent you and the password is Geronimo.”

“What?” Ezra took the backpack when Luke shoved it at him. His blue eyes were wide and confused, “What?”

“Ezra.” Luke stepped closer, “I’ve got to go and I know there’s something about to happen I can’t change because I’ve been outmaneuvered. If you want to get off the streets then the passenger is going to help you. What’s the passcode?”

“The passcode?” 

“To get their attention,” Luke demanded.

“Who can direct me to the market?” Ezra said; blinking rapidly as the blond nodded. 

“The password?”

“Geronimo.” 

“Two days, you might have to stay there all day but they’ll find you. Tell them everything you saw and do not lie and they’ll help you.” 

“Who are they?” The Lothal native followed him off the rooftop and onto the fire escape, “You can’t tell someone this and just walk away! Who is it?” 

“The person who saved me,” Luke told him seriously. “But you have to trust me and even if you don’t you should still go.” 

“But why?” 

“Because I have to go.” Luke closed his eyes and cursed Lord Vader for outwitting him. He’d be leaving with him and his wife no matter what. He wouldn’t get a say in it. “I have to go talk to my parents.” With that he jumped down the ladder and ran across the road to reach where the Vader’s were just beginning to look for him.

 

#$

Ezra watched the strange blond reach the tall man in green and the short woman in gray and take their hands with a shrug. He couldn’t hear what they were saying from this distance. Slowly he opened the backpack and began to go through the contents. It did have a lot of credits. The loth rat watched the blond a moment longer before he turned away from the roofs edge to think on what he’d been offered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys won't get anything from me until maybe after Christmas. During the holidays is a slim possibility. I have work and classwork piling on to of me. Also. This one is poorly edited, blame my burn out but the story should be fine.   
>  Moral boosting comments would be much appreciated.


	12. The Question

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke becomes a Vader

Is it just me or does he seem a lot more amiable to us?" Jifus leaned over her husbands shoulder, watching him work on his datapad. "Come on, you could see it too, Mr. I-can-sniff-out-lies."  
"I noticed." He replied, shifting just enough to grab another datapad but not enough to dislodge her from her perch. "And lies resonate differently in the force. As I said."

"So lies have a different resonance frequency than lies?" Jifus demanded, "Can this be measured by scientific means? What is the resonance frequency of lies. Do they differ from species to species? What do you do if they're shouted our screamed or yelled or cried? What about if they're from a species that don't speak?

"Wife!"

"What?" She spread her hands out, leaning closer to his mask, frowning. "Don't say things like that. They don't make any sense! I'm a woman of science, you can't expect me to just accept all of this mumbo jumbo nonsense." 

"You are a woman of medicine." 

"That is science. Medicine is a part of science."

"Wife?" 

"Yesssss?"

"If we asked him do you believe that he would agree tonight?" 

"Tonight?" Jifus frowned as she began tapping out an absent beat on his chest piece. "That is sudden. It might not work if we spring it on him now. He is pretty...cagey. A kid living as a stormtrooper for so long and bouncing between schools doesn't lend itself to stability. He might not be ready for it."

"It?"

"A family. Us, living in one place for a long time and keeping with other people, letting someone else do the worrying and taking care of them. I've seen adults have trouble adjusting to that."

"Case in point." Vader interjected, reaching back to trace a finger along her jaw absently, no noticing the motion as he made it. 

"Yep," she patted his hand, "little kids can adjust faster but it could get ugly." 

"You've done research."

"Hey, I'm new to this parenting thing. I'm trying to find information to help me. I know when I'm over my head and one thing I've learned in my years is that research is a godsend to anyone treading metaphorical water." 

"Indeed." Vader paused his work when Jifus sighed. She had been working nearly nonstop with the other cadets. Reworking the academy to be better for the students was draining and she hadn't been sleeping enough. "Are you well?"

"Just tired," She said, still tapping out her nonsensical beat, "You?"

"Busy, as always." 

"That's not what I asked."

"I am functioning sufficiently." 

"One of these days I'm going to get you to tell me how you really feel and it's going to be an uncomfortable day for all of us." 

"Do not be so sure, wife." Vader watcher her pulled herself to something resembling a standing position. 

"I..." she paused a bit, staring at the blank mask over the face of the man she'd married. Three and a half months and she had no idea what he looked like. She didn't know hardly anything about him and now she was agreeing to adopt a random child with him. "We need to talk."

"Oh." Inwardly, Vader cringed, nothing good ever came after that statement. 

"Look, I hardly know you. You hardly know me, I'm not surprised or anything but here's the deal. We're taking, or we're hoping, to take in a child that's gone without a real home for a long time. We're going to raise some small, impressionable young person that is also a stranger."

"What are you suggesting?"

"I'm suggesting we get to know each other a little better other than how to best be a smart ass and get away with it. We're married and that means we need open lines of communication."

"You have only been open and I would hazard to say that we are...friends." 

"Try not to sound so disgusted when you say that." Jifus said mildly, "If I were so inclined and if you were able we'd've already had very had very...I'm trying to think of the proper word to describe what kind of sex we'd have but I'm not coming up with anything." She peered at him, "How good were you?"

"There were never any complaints." Vader blurted before he yanked the words hiding beneath his tongue back as best he could.

"Really?" She slid over to settle on the desk. With a truly scientific frown, Jifus leaned forward, into his personal space again. "Athletic?" 

"Is is no concern of yours." 

"That's a no."

"WIFE!"

She shrugged, "Can you blame me?"

"Yes!"

"Do you know how many gossip rags have asked me to give the inside scoop on our sex life? Too many. I have been asked questions I would pay money to forget about. If I have to suffer then so do you." 

"This discussion is over." 

"I think we should ask him. He says not then fine if he says yes then I guess we send word ahead of us to have a room get set up for him at the residence." 

"...very well." 

The Sith Lord and the Doctor paused a moment. They both considered the possibility of having Luke say yes or no or being too unsure to formulate an actual reply. Vader gnawed angrily on Jifus' ultimatum and Jifus mulled over the possibilities of becoming a mother. 

"He's at dinner right now." Jifus said quietly, "Do we want to snag him before Thing 1 and 2 decide to haul him off to a night a endless chores?" 

"I will handle it," Vader promised.   
!!!!1

Luke chewed on the unappetizing slab of meat, doing his best to ignore the hovering of both Aresko and Grint. They'd stayed with him the entire evening, following him and promising dire threats of cleaning and endless running for his misbehavior. He knew as soon as he was done with dinner he'd get whisked away to spend a whole night scrubbing out refreshers and working on speeders. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Agent Kallus standing near the door to the main hall. He was usually ignored, except for when the Sith hovered with him. The sideburns giving his stern face an unusually unpleasant air. 

He knew that the man answered directly to the Sith Lord and the only reason he was around here was for...he didn't actually know what Agent Kallus was doing on Lothal. The last year of his file had been under lock and key so tight that the only think his usual file showed was that he'd been assigned highly classified assignments. Whatever assignment it was the rest of it had been filed away and locked down elsewhere. 

"Well, hurry it up, boy. You can't put off the evening forever." Aresko snapped, shoving his shoulder. "Come on, there is work waiting." His expression soured as Luke shot an ugly glare over his shoulder. "Well?"

Luke was a thief, he was a good thief and he was not going to be intimidated by a few bullies. He had thrown himself off the some of the highest buildings on Imperial Center to escape capture, he'd made off with Vader's prized ship, he'd stolen fortunes worth more than small planets and an entire roast shaak while it had been waiting to be carved up in front of hundreds and thousands. Dealing with small jerks like Arhesko and Grint grated on his fraying nerves.

"Yeah, hurry up. We don't want to stand here all day." Grint laughed at whatever joke he'd seen in the words. "We'll make you go without eating."

"If you want to make Lady Vader angry then be my guest." Luke replied coldly. "She's not going to be impressed by you." He returned to eating, chomping on the last few bites and glowering at the opposite wall. Still, they were right. There was only so long that he could delay the inevitable. Once he'd eaten the last of his food the two men had snagged his shoulders and were dragging him through the compound. Luke took solace in the fact that it would only take a few pieces of planted information for them to be arrested and possibly executed. He was halfway through planning out the proper revenge for having to deal with these two for an extended period of time when they shoved him down a semi-secluded hallway. Luke cursed furiously as he tripped over an uneven tile and fell to his hands and knees. 

"What." Luke froze where he had fallen, staring at the shiny boots of Darth Vader where they stood a few inches from his hands. "Is. This?" He'd heard the man irritated and humored all in the span of seconds but he'd never heard the man as furiously cold as this. Luke scrambled back to his feet, brushing his hands and knees off as the two men escorting him, seemed to freeze solid. 

"He's...well. He's going to. We, the boy was." 

"Speak plainly," Vader commanded, seemingly not looking at Luke but the thief could tell he'd been surveyed completely by an invisible gaze. "What is the meaning of this?" 

"He's to be punished tonight," Aresko finally managed to force out. "He was outside the academy ground today without a uniform and without permission. This is a serious breach of conduct in the Imperial stormtrooper academies."

"Punished or no, using excessive physical violence upon a child." Luke made a noise of irritation, "Is forbidden by all academy regulations. Or is it simply a matter of convenience to know the procedures and circumvent them?"

"No, my lord." Grint babbled, "We were just following the regulations! He has broken so many in the weeks he'd been here. We were just." 

"I will handle this." Vader commander. Luke schooled his expression into one of poorly concealed terror. The commanders must have noticed. They were unpleasant and horrible but even Luke's misdeeds didn't mean he deserved to be punished by the Sith himself. 

"Lord Vader, surly my companion and I can."

"Now." Vader commanded, his voice a thundering rumble that vibrated Luke's very bones. With nothing else to do, he followed the suddenly retreated Sith a frantic glance back to the two commanders. They stared after him and shrugged weakly when Vader set a hand on his shoulder and guided him into the turbolift. As soon as the doors closed, Luke coughed carefully, shuffling his feet. 

"You could have gotten me out of that this afternoon if you hadn't just dumped me on the doorstep."

"You should be grateful I retrieved you at all," Vader admonished. Luke flushed and sulkily crossed his arms. "I am not beholden to a poorly behaved child." 

"I'm not poorly behaved," Luke grumbled, "You're just picky." 

"Mind yourself, young Luke." He started a bit at the use of his first name. The door slid open and the thief was guided from the turbo lift and down the hall into a section of the academy he had never seen before. "Come." 

Luke followed after him, finally guessing that this was the section of the school that housed the guest quarters. It made sense to put them in here. You didn't want to be known for sticking Lord and Lady Vader in some dusty or smelly barracks. He was grinned when he noticed the room Vader was leading him to was the dining room equivalent. 

"A successful retrieval mission," Vader said as they entered, Doctor Lady looked up from her stack of flimsiplast and grinned.

"I see that, nicely done." She steppled her hands together and gave a solid attempt at an evil chuckle. "Hey, there, Luke. Come and join me for some tea?" 

"'Okay." He sat opposite her and boggled at the sight of Vader taking a seat as well. "Uh." 

"We were hoping to catch you before tweedle de and tweddle dum tried to drag you off to chores."

"Which he deserved." Vader said as his wife slid Luke a heavy mug. 

"Ignore him," Jifus waved, "Come on, I put some of the ground bee honey in it." She cut a side glare to Vader. "I'd be drinking caf but suddenly the entire academy seems to be out. It's the strangest thing. I wonder how it could have happened." Luke stifled his laugh in his tea. 

"It sure is strange. "He agreed, " A real mystery. "

"Don't get smart blondie." Jifus growled at him, still glowering at the obviously unrepentant Sith, "It's not an attractive quality." 

"It good tea," Luke blinked at her angelically,"What kind?"

"Some of the local imported stuff, not sure what the flavor is but it's okay." She glared at Vader. "It's not caf." Luke kicked his heels back and forth a bit, savoring the tea and bracing himself for the inevitable question. It was kind of odd to be sitting between a couple, enjoying himself and the flow of conversation around him. It was a vastly different dynamic than sitting at a table with his team, this felt homier and much different in a way that he couldn't really identify. All in all, there were much worse couples to be adopted by. 

"So, as you guessed, we didn't bring you here just to feed you some tea and make you listen to us bicker." Lady Vader played with a stylus for a moment before sticking it back behind her ear. "We wanted to ask you a question." 

Luke swallowed heavily and nodded, "What did you want to ask?"

"How do you feel about being adopted?" Jifus asked, "More specifically." 

"Adopted by us." Vader added.

"Yes, as in, going home with us. Leaving with us and...the paperwork to be our....son." 

"Oh." Luke blinked as his breath rushed out in a frantic swoop. "I." He'd been trying to prepare himself all day and still he was feeling sidelined. "I...um..." He glanced between the pair. "Why?"

"Well....." Jifus glanced over to her husband, obviously floundering. 

"We have the means and ability to care for a child," Vader said, looking at Luke with, what he assumed, was a soft expression. "It is both our duty and our pleasure to provide a home to a child that needs one." 

"Yes, that. That is it."

"I'm not a status symbol." Luke set his cup down firmly, glancing between the two of them. "I'm not here to make you feel better about yourselves. I'm not a prize or an award or anything like that. I'm not going to be a perfect kid and I sure won't be paraded around the holo news just so you," he pointed to Vader, "seem a lot more agreeable." 

"That is not our intention." Vader said.

"I've seen it before," He lied, "Rich people want kids but they just want a small adult that will do what they say and nothing else. I'm not going to put up with any of that." 

"I wouldn't expect you to," Jifus looked startled, "We just want to...I'm not good with words but the basics are, we'd like to take care of you. To help you and to help you accomplish whatever you wanted to accomplish with your life and possibly watch you grow up...more." 

Luke slumped over his tea, sucking it down slowly. A hour had passed before he spoke again. "I get nightmares," he said. Jifus brightened visibly, even Vader perked up. "And I'm sometimes a picky eater. I get into fights too, when I'm really mad." 

"We do too, last person I socked in the jaw was a Grand Moff, the silly bastard." 

"And I sometimes can't sleep and I get hyper focused on stuff and I cry a lot too when I'm upset." His next words were muffled when Jifus moved around the table and pulled him into a rather sudden and absolutely perfect hug. 

"I gotcha blonde. You're not perfect, I'm not perfect. Gods, do you think I married...your father because he was perfect?" Luke shivered at the words and pressed closer to the woman that would become his mother. "I've survived this long dealing with imperfect people. I think I can do it again." 

"I just want you to know," Luke said quietly and grinned in sudden humor as Vader appeared at the doctor's side to settle a hand on both of their shoulders. "Just so you know."


	13. ISS DEathy McTurbolasers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shopping, debates, and ships. ISB agents are suspicious bastards and Luke is cute.

Luke was not easily impressed or intimidated. He had stood on the edges of cliffs that would cast him into never ending oblivion. He had robbed his own soon-to-be father blind. He had tangled with bandits, criminals, scum, and deviants of the worst kind. Still, venturing into unknown and unfamiliar territory without even the most cursory of information was a frightening prospect. Luke did not know how to belong to a family. He did not know how to be a son, a child; he did not know how to be innocent. At 13 he was a criminal of some infamy and attached to a very successful crew of like-minded criminals. 

It took all of his grifting skills to not dissolve into a useless bundle of nerve and worries. He took every ounce of self-control that he could muster to manage his fears. Still, even as his soon-to-be mother handed him a potential shirt, Luke was still shuffling about in his nervousness. 

“Green is a nice color on you.” Jifus observed, “Try that one on.” 

“I don’t know,” Luke surveyed the green tunic with trepidation. “Why can’t I just wear my cadets grays?”

“They are hideous and an insult to my sensibilities.” The doctor replied, “We’ll get different clothes when we get back to Courasant   
but I want something that isn’t military for you to wear.” 

“If I wear my cadets grays I’ll blend in with the rest of the people on the ship.” Luke pushed the tunic back at his mother. She pushed it back and glared in a way that he was beginning to understand meant that anything he said was going to be summarily ignored after the point. 

“You are not a Stormtrooper cadet. You will dress like you are a civilian, which you are soon to become. Believe me, the distinction between military and civilian is paramount to maintain among the army and navy types. Wear your grays and you’ll be scrubbing refreshers in an hour. I have the credit chip and if you don’t think I’m not planning on spending more than necessary…you’re right. I can’t stand spending money. Still, go try those on and let me see what they look like on you.”

“This is the same green as his cloak.” Luke ignored the indulgent smiles of the shop attendants. “But!”

“Go on. I’ll be waiting right here when you get out of the changing room. Just try on the size and we’ll get the right colors.”

“But!” Luke was helpless as he was herded into the dressing room and grumbled when the door shut.   
Jifus crossed her arms and grinned triumphantly. 

“He’s pretty well-behaved for going shopping,” Observed the oldest looking attendant. “What’s the occasion?”

“Adoption,” Jifus smothered her insecurities with the ease of decades of practice and nodded when the man congratulated. “He needs new things and I can’t stand those Stormtrooper grays.”

“Ah, a cadet from the local academy?”

“Yep, he’s managing pretty well but I’m sure he’s a nervous puddle right now.” 

“He looks like it.” Another attendant joined in. “What’s his name?” 

“Luke, he’s about 13 right now. We’re very excited.” Well, Vader was excited. Jifus was more concerned but no one would believe that the adoption had been her husband’s idea. Child-rearing had never been high on her list of desires but she was willing to give it a try. Of course, she’d never thought she’d settle down well or long enough for it to be possible. “Shh, go go.” She waved the shop attendants off as Luke glumly emerged from the dressing room. He pulled self-consciously at the hem of his shirt and refused to look her in the eye. “Well, how does it fit?’’

“It fits fine,” Luke mumbled, “Can I go yet?” 

“It looks good on you,” She praised, pulling down the same size in different color from the racks. 

“Yellow.” 

“Uh?” 

“Can we get…the yellow one?” Jifus grimaced at the thought of how poorly it would clash with Luke’s bright hair but passed that one into her basket. He hadn’t asked for much and seemed overwhelmed by how much attention he was getting. 

“Sure, go get changed and we’ll head back. The shuttle leaves tonight.”

“Okay.” Honestly flustered and confused by how attentive the woman was being, Luke ran back into the privacy of the changing room and changed as quickly as he could manage. When he was finished he nearly threw the green shirt as his mother and ducked as far into his jacket as was physically possible. Sensing his mounting distress and choosing to not tease him for it, Jifus rushed the buying and was out the door as soon as she’d paid. Back in the crowd on the street, Luke sighed gratefully. 

“It was starting to get cramped and hot in there.” He admitted, “I needed some space.”

“Are you alright?” 

“Yeah, I’m just not used to that sort of stuff. A whole new world for me.”

“Hmm.” Luke ducked gratefully into her side when her arm slung over his shoulder. Hidden there he felt a little more protected from the galaxy and the danger that lay within it. “If I bribe you with a pastry the size of your hands will you wear the green one when we leave tonight?”

“Sure.” Ten minutes Luke was stifling his grin as he repeated his mother’s words. “You said ‘hands’ not hand.” He pressed them over the protective covering of a much bigger pastry than his mother had probably been intending. “This is the size of my hands. Not my hand.”

“Luke.” Jifus pressed her hands to her head and groaned. With a thought she took his hands and pressed them together and smirked when Luke looked dismayed. “You are right, I did say hands.” Palm to palm the greedy intention on the much larger baked good were now impossible. “This gets you, at most, a cookie.”

“If we’re going to get picky.” He set his middle-finger fingertips together and then spread his fingers as wide as he could manage, 

“And haven’t decided on the configuration then this should work fine too. That means I can pick one of the bigger ones.” 

“As the final authority on the matter,” Jifus scolded, “I choose the configuration and it is the former. Now picked out something before I reverse my position and you leave here empty handed.” Luke glowered. 

“That’s an abuse of authority.” Luke pointed out, “If you go back on your word.”

“This is a bribe, Luke. I can withdraw it at any moment.” The doctor bobbed his nose gently, “Pick something, you have three minutes.” Luke capitulated but didn’t look happy. 

#$#$#4

Lady Vader returned to the Imperial Academy with her pack much fuller than it had been and with Luke in tow. The blond was munching on a something brown and obviously delicious that Kallus could smell across the hall. The ISB agent wasn’t sure if he’d ever seen Luke look as alive as he did at the moment. The boy actually looked like a boy. The two disappeared from view, only Luke having noticed the agent standing by an office door; Kallus wondered if anyone else figured out that the kid was much smarter than he was letting on. 

“Kallus.”

“Tove.”

“What is Lord Vader’s stand on games?” Kallus blinked at the question and his eyes were drawn to the plastic box in her hand. “Video games to be precise?”

“I’m sure I don’t know.” Kallus blinked as the familiar cover of a strategy game came into view.

“This one is not just a game. It’s developed as a data-mine on its players. Information taken by the game, beyond name and age, are send to the ISB to help locate those most suited for ISB work or like careers. This one measures intelligence, ingenuity, quick-thinking, skills, reflexes, timing, and a dozen other things.”

“Why in the name of everything holy in the galaxy do parents let their children play games like this?” Kallus wondered, turning the box over in his hand. “Such an invasion of their privacy.”

“Luke’s information would only be threaded to our unit to help us track any of his likely friends. It also connects to the holo-net for teams to play one another; it is possible that his team might try to contact him through the game.” 

“It is possible.” Kallus said dubiously but bowed to the experience of the older woman. 

“It also has a dozen personality tests embedded within the programming. As the player moves through the different levels and ages the tests see how they have changed and what is different.” Kallus felt a little uneasy at the woman’s bright smile but said nothing. “I think it’ll be useful. If he allows it.” 

“He might not; Lady Vader might be against them you know.” 

“She might be.” Tove’s expression twisted into one of irritation, “As a doctor she might be a lot stricter on rules of health.”

“Being strict on health would be a hypocritical joke.” Kallus snorted, “Have you seen how much caf she drinks in a day? Do you know how little she actually sleeps?”

“She is still a civilian.” Tove observed, “And being married to Lord Vader or not might not make her inclined to help anyone in the ranks.” 

“She is very…anti-military.” Kallus agreed, “I’ve heard her speak, she can’t stand it.”

“Hmmm, how much intel do you have on her?” 

“Only what Lord Vader has given us.” Tove frowned. “Should I ask Banka to gather more?”

“Keep it quiet,” Tove ordered him, “We don’t want to seem treasonous but her file is too small for a character like Lady Vader.”

“She may have hidden anti-Imperial sentiments.”

“Why would Lord Vader marry her then?”

“He could know and doesn’t care. He doesn’t know and doesn’t care. He doesn’t know and does care or he shares them.” 

“Ah.” Kallus wondered if any of those options made sense and wanted to tell himself they were all false but he’d been an agent too long to allow that much delusion to cloud his judgment. “I’ll comm her when the Vader’s are gone and we can have the academy back.” 

“Good man.” Tove patted his shoulder and moved away, disappearing into thin air a moment later. 

Kallus shook his head and went back to his own quarters with the intention of catching a quick nap. 

#$#43

Lord Vader had been engaged in paper work when two familiar voices rang across the rooms. They were raised in argument. 

“But you never specified!” Luke was complaining. “My hands, you said ‘hands’ not hand but ‘hands’!”

“I know what I said.” His wife didn’t sound nearly as annoyed as she was pretending to be. “And trying to lawyer yourself into getting a new pastry isn’t going to help.”

“But you said ‘hands’ using authority and loopholes to avoid delivering on a promise makes you a bad businesswoman!” 

“Does it? That’s what makes a great businesswoman.” Vader tucked his thumbs into his belt and waited as his wife and son appeared into the room. Luke was carrying a pastry and was guarding it jealously. Jifus dropped her pack onto a couch carelessly and tossed herself onto the largest chair available. “I’ll have you know,” she pointed hand at Luke, “I can squeeze medicine and supplies from any black-market merchant three times lower than their initial asking price by doing exactly that.” 

“It’s a dirty trick.” Luke grumbled and disappeared into the kitchen to fix himself a glass of milk. Jifus relayed the point of their argument to him and he was grinning broadly behind his mask. 

“A few more years and he’ll be a rich little miser,” Jifus laughed, “I’m so proud already. Anything keeping us from leaving tonight?”

“No, Minister Tua had invited us to a dinner but I told her you were wanting to return to your patients.” 

“Nicely done, how long until the preparations are done?”

“How long until you and Luke are packed?”

“Two hours. I need to make sure that they’re planning on sticking to my orders.”

“I will ensure it.” 

“Great.” Jifus lounged on the couch a moment longer and winked a Luke when he returned. “We’re leaving in two hours. Pack was   
you want and need and then we’re off aboard the ISS Deathy McTurbolasers.” Vader sighed but made no comment when Luke covered his mouth with his hand to hide his grin. “Then to the residence.”

“Okay.” Luke seemed pleased and excited and embarrassed to be pleased and excited. 

#$#$3

“Have you been on the bridge of a star destroyer?” Vader asked Luke. The blond was following on his heels as he moved through his ship. Jifus had already departed for her beloved medical bay to see to any patients. 

“No.” Vader nodded. Stormtroopers saluted as he passed and each of the officers did so even as their gazes were arrested by the sight of the blond teenager. They made no mention of him but Vader could feel their curiosity. 

“Come.” He ordered and moved toward the bridge. The walk was completed in silence and when he emerged onto the bridge his captain saluted briskly. “Captain, report.” 

“The Devastator is ready for hyperspace, milord, at your command.” 

“Very well.” Luke’s wide eyes were turned to every corner of the bridge. He drank in the sight of the officers, the troopers and the enormous viewport where he could see Lothal hanging like a beautiful ornament. “Helmsman, take us out.” 

“Aye, hyperdrive activating in 3…2…1.” The man at the console pulled a heavy looking level down and the ship leapt into hyperspace. The stars elongated and Luke gaped. He had been in hyperspace before; he had been at the helm when it happened   
too. Still, the wide expanse of hyperspace in front of him was the biggest he had ever seen. Luke was moving away from the Sith Lord before he was aware he moved. When he reached the viewport he pressed a hand to the transperisteel.

“Wow.” 

“Indeed.” He was joined by Vader a moment later, unaware of the stares he was drawing from the other Imperials.

“It’s so big.” Luke felt that familiar stirrings of excitement and burning curiosity. “What size is the hyperdrive for the ship? What is made in the Kuat shipyards? The Mon Cal shipyards make hyperdrives for ships this size but they’re usually passenger liners but they have some great big ones for battle ships too.” 

“Manufactured on Geonosis,” Vader replied patiently to Luke’s excitement. “Under duress it can reach .23 past lightspeed.”

“Wow.” Luke pressed closer to the glass and grinned up at the impassive black mask.

“When we reach Courasant you will see the 6th Fleet assembled in battle formation. Along with the refueling centers built onto the moons and the repairs yards.”

“I can’t wait!” 

“You must,” Vader chided him and gently escorted him away from the viewport and toward the exit. “All will come to pass as the Force wills it.”


	14. Bedtime

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jifus was in med-school. Vader was in war and Luke is a criminal. They have no idea how 'normal' functions.

Ezra had been the Capital City spaceport when he’d been younger. His parents had come ti pick up a piece of equipment or meet some stranger. They would ply him with a piece of hard honey candy to keep him quiet while they talked or worked. Sometimes his father would carry him all the way up on his shoulders so he could see the huge crowds. His mother would pretend to pull Ezra off without catching him only to get him at the last second before he hit the ground. Sometimes, when his brain went quiet enough for it, Ezra thought about that sort of stuff. 

Now, he wasn’t thinking about his parents. His mind was focused on the promised stranger that the strange blond had mentioned. Boy, hadn’t that been an odd encounter. He’d planned on ignoring it until his curiosity had gotten the better of him. Weird blond kids in Stormtrooper grays weren’t to be trusted and when they offered a magical way out of poverty, Ezra was even more skeptical. 

It could be a trap that would end up with him in some spice mine or in one of those brothels. Or it could end up with him being stuck in the same kind of Stormtrooper grays. 

“Arrival 223-987 on pad 5 from Onderon. Arrival 223-987 on pad 5 from Onderon.” Ezra felt his hackles raise and the oncoming promise of change set his teeth on edge. New arrivals began to merge with the lingering crowds at the termina kiosks and the food-vendors. In the rise of noise and the buzzing chatter Ezra weaved his way through the crowd. 

“HEY!” Ezra yelped as an enormous hand clamped onto his shoulder and hauled him up and away from the crowd. He recognized, dismally, the fleshy face of his main tormentor; Commander Grint of the Lothal Stormtrooper Academy. “Well, if it isn’t the loth-rat, come here to pick some pockets of these fine Imperial citizens?” The few people that were watching began patting their pocket and bags. Ezra made note of where they looked and then growled at the oversized trooper. 

“Let me go fatty! I’m on business today!” 

“Which means you’re headed to the brig, brat!” Grint growled, ‘What would a rat like you want ina spaceport.” 

“I need someone to direct me to the market!” Ezra shouted a bit frantically. Grint was a lot bigger than he was and he did have a pretty tight grip on his shoulder. He was dragged toward the waiting holding-speeder. 

There was a brief instant when Ezra saw the strange woman in red and green brush against the overweight Stormtrooper. In the next second Grint released Ezra, screaming. He wasted no time getting free, sprinting away from the trooper and on the heels of the stranger. If he didn’t run now he would never be free again, this much he knew. Even when the woman dragged his into a closet and shoved his tiny form against a stack of mops; pressing a blaster muzzle into his chest, Ezra knew that he was now safe. 

“Who the hell are you?” She was a human. Well, she looked human. With dark skin, oddly black-ish eyes and dark hair that was pulled back in a simple tail. Her tunic was a deep red with extra pockets and her pants were a deep green, again with extra pockets. The enormous bad slung over her lean shoulder looked heavy but she carried it with ease and grace. “Well?”

“Geronimo.” Ezra said. “Geronimo.”

“Hmm.” The too dark eyes surveyed him. “What an odd thing to say.” 

“I met a blond guy on the street two days ago. He gave me his backpack and told me that a stranger coming in two days would help me if I used the pass-code and phrase.” He was afraid, so very afraid but he was a whole lot more desperate. “He said that they’d help.”

“Did he say why?”

“Why what?”

‘Why he wouldn’t show.” The muzzle didn’t waver. “Why he would give his life-line to…you.” 

“He said he had to get back to his parents.” Ezra said slowly, tasting the word. “They were waiting for him in the market.” 

“Really?” She released him and he found himself crumbling alongside the mops. The racket they made was ignored by both inhabitants of the cleaning closet. His breath echoed around the cramped space. “Really?” Ezra watched her tucked the blaster away and wondered what she could be up to. “Really?” 

“Yeah, why do you keep saying really?” 

“I’m deciding what to do with you.” 

“Really?” Ezra grimaced and then shrugged at her glance. “Okay.” 

“We’re going out on the next flight off Lothal. I hope you have all your stuff on you because we’re leaving once I get the tickets.” 

“Tickets? Why not get a ship?” The stranger cracked the door open enough and then slapped the controls so it would open completely. 

“Ships are easily tracable, big and money sink-holes. Tickets on passenger liners are never paid attention to. Anyone can go anywhere with a basic and pathetic security system to bypass.” 

“I don’t have an ID.” 

“Hmmm, you won’t need one. Come on.” 

“But I can leave Lothal!”

“Why not?’ She seemed interested in his answer even if it might have been only to mock him. 

“It’s my home!” Ezra protested, “I live here.” 

“You’ll live somewhere else too. This can be your home but you can’t live here anymore. Do you want to get off the streets or not?”

“What do you want in return? There has to be a catch.” 

“There is and you’re already a criminal so don’t worry. I have jobs that I take. WE rob a sucker and split the cash. Simple, easy if you know how to do it right. If you don’t then I’ll teach you.” 

“What kind of job?”

“We do stuff you don’t see on the news. People don’t like to admit that we’ve been where we’ve been. Since Luke is out of the picture then I’ll need a new kid to take his place.”

“What’s your name?”

“Call me Demlea.”

“That’s not your name.” 

“No.” 

“I’m Ezra.”

“Fantastic, I’ve got people waiting. We’re leaving.” Twenty minutes later Ezra had been hustled on board a passenger liner and watched Lothal fade into the distance and then vanish in hyperspace. 

“Stop looking out.” The woman muttered and slapped a holo-zine into his chest. “Read something and look natural. Being confused and odd sticks out, look bored and tired and no one pays attention.” 

“Alright.” Ezra glanced at hyperspace and then opened his holo-zine. He was in the most bizarre setting, sitting in a comfortable seat, beside a complete stranger that had held him at blaster point. He hoped the blond knew what he was doing. 

#$#$#$

Luke wished he knew what he was doing. He wished he had some sort of handbook for experiences like these. Or maybe something he could cling to as his entire word was tossed upside down. All of his personal effects except the pieces of moister vaporator had been given Ezra. Fiddling nervously with them almost helped him calm down. 

“Luke?” A few of the throw pillow flopped off the couch when he whirled around and glanced over the back. Agent Tove was standing at the door, looking around the room with something approaching fascination. She waved at him and gestured to the heavy bag off her shoulder. “I brought some things.” 

“Things? What are you doing here? I thought you’d get stuck on Lothal.” He stood on the couch and leaned over the back just enough to catch the mercenary gleam in the woman’s eye. 

“I’m headed back to my original posting. Besides, I thought you’d like your stuff.” 

“I have my stuff.” 

“Most of it, this is from your classmates.” Tove walked around the couch and set the bag down beside him. She remained standing. “Go on.” Luke cautiously tipped the bag toward himself. A dozen or so flimsi’s fell out, some of them covered in familiar handwriting. “They wrote notes.” 

“Really?”

“Yeah.” 

“Why?”

“Lots of reasons, some of them are jealous and most of them were happy for you.

“Okay.” Luke picked up the first one and flipped it open. A few more than then he opened the bag the rest of the way to find a gaming console and few game chips. “What are these?”

“Games,” Tove winked at them. “That’s from me and my partners. We weren’t sure what sort of stuff you get up to with a crazy doctor and sith as your parents.” 

“My parents are fine!” Luke protested. “Just different.” 

Tove stared and then tilted her head to the side, “Sure thing, kid. Do you like them?”

“I guess,” he shrugged, “I’ve never had stuff like this before.” 

“Ah, right.” Tove coughed, “Anyway, why’d they leave you here alone?”

“Uh, Doctor Lady…Mom? Mother? Err, said she had to check on her patients and…he had to go talk to the guys on the ship.” 

“You’re alone then.” Tove hummed a bit and kicked her feet up on her desk, “Do you want to learn how to play?”

“Are you here to keep me company or keep an eye on me?” 

“A little of both,” Tove said, “good catch.” 

“Thanks,” Luke flashed her a grin and kicked his heels against the couch, looking at the notes. “What do you think I could be getting up to?”

“Who knows!” Both agent and teen turned around when Lady Vader fumbled through the door. “When I was your age I got into all sorts of trouble!” 

“You were in med-school! How much trouble could you have gotten into?” Luke exclaimed. Tove stifled a chuckle.

“Lots of trouble!” Jifus said, dropping her bag to the ground and throwing her hands in the air. Her lab-coat had a concerning amount of blood stains. “Tons of it!”

“…okay.” Luke ducked his face in his papers to hide his grin. “How are your patients?”

“Dead.”

“Wait! Really?” Luke blinked at her laugh and then blushed.

“You can go agent,” Jifus waved a hand Tove’s direction, “Don’t know what…did you give him games? You are not playing gamey gameies!”

“They’re a present!” Luke clutched the bag, “It’s rude not to use them!”

“Video games will rot your brains!” 

“That’s just a dumb rumor!” Luke cried back and pulled his bag closer. “No. They’re mine!” 

“Huh,” Jifus’ gray eye slanted suspiciously at Luke and then she laughed. “As long as they’re for your age rating then you can keep them.” 

“They’re not!’ Tove called over her shoulder when she left. 

Luke froze, uncertain when the doctor flopped onto an overstuff chair and clung her legs over the armrests. There were a lot of places this could go. He really had no idea what to do. Gohan had been a boss and a partner and Aphra was too short tempered to be anyone’s family. Besides that she seemed to be going through a few problems of her own and Doora. He wasn’t going to think about Doora. 

“What kind of games are they?” She asked, deliberately closing her eyes and rubbing her forehead. Luke, grateful for the fact she wasn’t looking at him, answered.

“Um, there’s a piloting game…a strategy one, one for puzzles…ohh, a podracing one! I thought they didn’t make those for humans!”

“Hmm.” The woman sounded tired but pleased. “Fine, you can keep them.” Luke didn’t think he was actually in any danger of having his games being confiscated. “What do you think?”

“Of what?” 

“This place.” She gestured to the quarters they were housed in. Luke was used to lots of space. Their old Separatist base had a lot of space but Luke preferred to sleep in a small room. He’d literally made the small ex-armory into his room. There wasn’t a specific reason he liked such small rooms but he knew there could be one tied to his lost memories.

“It’s big and kind of empty. I’m used to tight spaces.” Luke admitted.

“Hmmm, that makes sense.” Jifus sat up straight and set her feet to the ground. “What do you think of it so far then?”

“I like the bridge and I liked his really big office. I saw the ship head into hyperspace…uh…plus they will bring food up to us.”

“Crap! Have you eaten? Holy shit! Fuck! No! I shouldn’t be cursing! Sensitive little ears!” She slapped a hand over her mouth. After a minute she reconsidered, “Do you need food?”

“I…I guess. I don’t eat on a schedule either. We ate when we were told.” And when   
Gohan actually got around to make food. 

“Okay. I can do this. I can do this. I can feed us.” Jifus opened up the comlink. “Ensign! We need food!”

“What kind of food, Lady Vader?” 

“Good food…with meat and stuff. Oh and vegetables and some dessert.”

“Ah…we?”

“My son and myself need food.” 

“…son?” The man’s voice was a little more than pinched. “SON!”

“Son! My food! Our food. Feed us, hurry. I haven’t eaten in twenty eight hours.” 

“Yes, Lady Vader! At once, Lady Vader!” The line went dead. Luke giggled in his hands.

“How many people know you’ve adopted?” 

“Not sure,” Jifus said, “But Ensign brings food so that means it’s on its way. I’m doing a great job!” 

“Do you know anything about parenting?”

“I do not but I’ve looked it up on the holo-net.” 

Luke rubbed his face and flopped dramatically to the side. “I’m doomed!” 

“You are,” Jifus agreed.

#$#$#4

The woman was not human. Four days of travel, moving and sleeping in cramped passenger liners told Ezra that much. When she stepped out of the refresher in the old seppie base that served as her home, Ezra was positive. Human’s did not have red eyes or blue skin. 

“You look good.” Doora appeared from a corner. She was human, shorter and dark than Ezra. She was also a year or two younger. Still, he got the vibe she would kill him easily. “You make a ugly human.”

“I hate looking human to fit in.” She shrugged her shoulder and tossed her hair out, grinning. “Ezra, you can get the room across from Luke’s. Where’s Aphra?” 

“Oh on Mandalore, she’s chasing down some old gun.”

“What’s a gun?” Ezra wondered, following the strangers down the hal. 

“Some old blaster.” Doora shrugged, “Whatever you do don’t go into her work shop or in her museum. She keeps her best stuff there. Gohan, where’s Luke?”

“He’s been adopted,” Gohan said distractedly, “I’m keeping an eye on him. Don’t worry, if he gets into real trouble he knows how to contact us.” 

“What’s going on?” Ezra asked, still trailing on their heels. “What are you people?”

“We’re thieves, stupid.” Doora snapped. “Where’d you pick up bozo anyway?”

“Lothal. Luke thinks he’ll be useful while he’s out of the picture.”

“I can be a grafter!” Ezra protested, “I’m really good at conning people out of stuff.’

“You’ll still need lessons,” Gohan decreed, leading them both into the kitchen. “You’ll need to be taught how to grift professionally. Luke was a blank slate, you’re not. We’ll be okay in a few weeks.” 

“Ok.” 

“Now, I’m going to make food and you’re going to enjoy it.” Gohan began assembling needed boxes and bowls. 

“Great, Corellian glop.” Doora elbowed him viciously in the side. Ezra winced, “You’ll get used to eating the same stuff all of the time.” 

“Better than nothing,” Ezra said and they both nodded. 

“I’m leaving after dinner,” Doora proclaimed. “There’s a bounty I’m eyeing and I think it’ll be a nice training exercise.” 

“Training? Where?” 

“Mandalore.” Ezra watched the scene settle. Two people comfortable with each other, sharing a common space and conversation. He hadn’t known it in a long time.

“Keep your eyes open, plenty of those hunters won’t like having new blood.” 

“I’ll be careful.” Doora promised. Ezra’s stomach cramped when he smelled cooking meat. So far he’d been carefully eating whatever Gohan bought him to make sure he wouldn’t get sick introducing so many complex carbohydrates so soon.

“Good, Ezra, we’ll start what’ll have to pass as your training and practice tomorrow. I’ve got some ideas for our next heist and you’ll need to be trained up.”

“Okay.” Ezra blinked, “But…I get a room right?”

“Room, hot water for bath or shower, all the space you want and there are some fuzzy animals that Luke lets live in his gardens. You might want to look into taking care of them.” 

“Okay,” Ezra scratched his head, “How great was this Luke guy anyway?”

“That’s none of your business.” Gohan interjected before Doora could reply. “Where ever he his he’ll be fine. He’s the best grafter in the business.” 

#$#$3

The Ensign hadn’t stopped staring at him since he’d come into the room. The cart of food pushed by two droids was left in the middle of the living room where he and Doctor Vader had taken the liberty to picking off of. 

“Do I have something on my face?” Luke asked.

“No.” The man shook his head and then shrugged. “No food on your face.” 

“Okay, then why are you staring at me?”   
“Well…” The man glanced at the doctor. She was absorbed in stirring some bright red powdering into her soup. “You’ve been adopted by Lord and Lady Vader.”

“Yeah.” Luke knew exactly what sort of effect he was having on the man. He wanted to see how far he could push the nervous little man. “What of it?”

“Well, ah…you’re very…um.” 

“Ensign, stop. He’s jerking your leg. Luke, stop gaslighting the man.” 

“Hey!” 

“Thank you, milady.” 

Jifus looked up, “Are you done oogling the kid?’

“You adopted!”

“Yes we did. Don’t act like this was all my decision.”

“It’s highly unusual.”

“Isn’t it?”

“Err, is there anything else I can do for you, Lady Vader?”

“Not really.” The doctor lounged comfortably. He didn’t know how she did it but she managed to make even the most uncomfortable surfaces seem comfortable. She also had a magical ability to reduce Vader’s terrifying factor a huge percentage. “Go off shift. I know you’re tired.” 

“Yes, milady.” He bowed and made a break for it, leaving the two to their privacy.

#$#$#

Darth Vader returns to his expanded quarters late in the night cycle. After hours of paperwork, reports, commands and negotiations with Queen Apindala he expects both his wife and son to be in bed. This is not the case. His wife was absorbed in some trashy holo-zine she must have stolen from an officer. Her legs were crookedly perched on the back of the arm chair and she was upside down. Luke was focused on a gaming console in his hands. His pale brows were drawn together in a frown. When entered the room only Luke looked up.

“What?” He jabbed a hand at the teenager and forced himself calm when the blond flinched. “Are you doing up?”

“I’m playing?” Luke blanched and looked toward the bored doctor for support.

“It is, by Lothal time, four in the morning. What are you doing awake? You should have been in bed hours ago.” 

“Uh.” Luke glanced around, scrambled for words and then slumped in his seat. “I guess.” 

“There is not guess, your bed time is now 9:30. You will either be in bed or getting ready for it. You may no longer be in the academy but I will not allow you to run wild.” He shook his hand warningly. “You have familiarized yourself enough with the rooms to take care of yourself and go to bed. Now go.” 

“But I’m!”

“Going to bed? Yes you are. A wise decision.” 

“But!” 

“Good night, Luke,” the doctor interjected. “sleep well.” 

“Oh come on! I’m not a baby!”

“You are certainly acting infantile enough to be one. Go, before I take you there myself.” 

Luke glowered, “You wouldn’t dare.” 

“Oh, boy. Don’t do that Luke, he doesn’t know how to bluff. I promise you he will toss you in bed fully clothed and then aggressively parent you. Just go on your own and save yourself the humiliation.”

“I don’t need a bedtime.” 

“If you have the presence of mind you would have already gone to sleep and taken care of yourself.” Vader pointed out.

“I’m fine; I’m used to staying up for hours and hours.” 

“You will not be doing so any longer.” He was determinedly not looking at his wife. He didn’t need to to know she was grinning broadly. “You are a growing boy.” 

“I can’t believe you just said that.” Luke buried his face in his hands. “Did you swallow a parenting book? Look, I appreciate the concern but I’m not a fainting moon flower. I’ll be fine.” 

“Very well.” For such a bulky man he sure moved fast. One second Luke was deliberating the miserable turn the evening had taken and the next he was hoisted into the air, squalling. None of his kicking and thrashing did him any good. Vader tucked him into a neat bundle and carted him across the living room. Face burning with embarrassment he did his best to wiggle free.

“PUT ME DOWN!”

“Assuredly not.” Luke heard the distant sounds of his mother laughing. “You are going to bed if I must do this task myself.”

“Put me down!” Luke’s blush deepened as they entered his own room. He scrambled for a grip against the Sith’s hold only to be plopped, unceremoniously onto the bed. Fabric tangled in his pin wheeling limbs. He sprawled ungainly on the bed and righted himself just enough to glare the armored man. Vader crossed his arms. 

“You have twenty minutes.” 

“This isn’t fair!” 

“Good night, Luke.” Vader intoned and Luke pushed down the giddy feeling in his stomach just enough to cross his arms and glare right back. “If you are wise you will concede this battle.” 

“I’m not some kid you have to tuck into bed. I’m thirteen.”

“Perhaps the most difficult age to realize you are not, in fact, omnipotent.”

“Twenty minutes,” Vader reiterated and Luke hurled a pillow at the back of his head in a fit of sudden and stupid frustration. He didn’t even bother to consider the idiocy of it until it reversed direction in mid-air to smack him in the face and knock him over. “Then you will learn the true power of the dark side.” Luke gaped after his father. He struggled with the absurd desire to laugh and finally groaned and flopped to the side. 

The closet was almost empty but there were enough clothes in it for Luke to be frustrated as he looked for his sleeping-clothes. They weren’t there. The last place he’d remembered them being was when his mother had been eyeing them with distaste and no small amount of disgust. She could have gotten rid of them but that didn’t seem her style. Luke must have lost them. Twenty minutes later both of his new parents edged into his room curiously to see Luke overturning pillows and chairs to locate his pajamas.

“I can’t find them!” Luke exclaimed, avoiding looking at both of them.

“Find what?” 

“My pajamas! I thought they were in my closet but they’re not and now I’m confused.” 

“Okay.” The woman blinked a few times. “I’ll go get you a stop gap measure. We’ll find them tomorrow. Alright?”

“But I can’t find them!” Luke waved his arms, “they were just here.” 

“Okay, okay. Give me a sec, I stole something from my dad you can use.” She vanished leaving Luke under the intimidating and frightening scrutiny of his father. Vader said nothing and didn’t move. When Jifus returned she had a shirt still wrapped in its flimsy plastic container. “This is just a really bit shirt, basically a nightgown but I know it’ll fit you. My dad doesn’t fit in it, it’s a few sizes to large.”

“Uh,” Luke accepted the shirt. Adverting his eyes from the adults, he mumbled, “Could you go please?”

“Sure, sure thing.” Jifus shoved (Vader allowed himself to be moved) her husband from the room, grinning at him. “Good night, we’ll see you in the morning.”

“Okay.” Luke waved a bit lamely and surveyed the bright red men’s shirt. He shrugged and five minutes later was settling down onto his bed. It felt oddly soft, really soft for a criminal. Having parents didn’t seemed to be a cracked up as everyone thought. It was very strange to have people give him rules while caring about him. He wavered a bit and then got up and peaked out his door. Vader and Jifus were sitting close to one another and speaking softly. He could hear the deep rumble of the Sith’s vocoder and the soft hushing tones of the doctor. Luke would have tried to eavesdrop longer but Vader made a motion. It was hidden from Jifus by furniture and the enormous black armor and intended. Luke recognized Stormtrooper short hand and grimaced at the command directed at him. He obeyed hastily as he remembered the incident just half an hour ago. If anyone had told him he’d be strong armed into going to bed by Darth Vader he would have laughed himself sick. 

He climbed back into bed and pulled his blanket up close. A few minutes later he was out like a light. 

#$#$

“He should have been in bed.” 

“I never had a bedtime. I never did any of that stuff, I was pretty unaware of what time it was anyway.” Jifus shrugged and then flapped her arms his direction. “Relax, he’s in bed now. At least I got him fed. You got him in bed. Together we make a functioning human. 

“This is not amusing wife, this is to be taken seriously.” Vader settled into the enormous armchair that had been commissioned by his wife as a secondary wedding present. “He needs a proper schedule.” 

“Did you other kid have the same thing?” Jifus took her usual spot on the couch.

“When we had the luxury of stability she was always in be by 10, at the latest. A fact she protested often but never swayed me from my conviction.” Vader had several carefully excavated and preserved memories of tucking a sulking and miserable Ahsoka into whatever bed was available. She’d hated the treatment and told him that the other padawans had made fun of her for it. The then-younger man had never listened to any of her arguments. He’d always had to be physically present to make sure she’d actually gone to bed. “So yes, the same troubles often apply to teenagers.” 

“I was in med-school. I have no idea how normal people function.”

“Luke needs an appropriate bedtime.” 

“Now I know that.” She made a few vague gestures, “Anyway, how much longer until we get back?”

“Three days.”

“Okay.” Jifus sagged in her seat and pressed her hands to her head, “What are you going to do? You tossed the poor kid into his bed, he’s probably traumatized.”

“He threw a pillow at my head.” 

“So he’s only a little traumatized.” 

“We have been thus far successful today.”

“Is he asleep?”

“He is.” 

“Okay, we’re doing great. Doing just great.” 

“Indeed.” Vader paused and thought carefully of bringing up a particular topic before tossing the thought away. “Perhaps it is time we retire as well.” 

“You’re right. See you in the morning.” 

“Very well.” Vader carefully took his wife’s hand and helped her to her feet. She always seemed to tire herself out until coherency was a struggle. Once he might have thought it was endearing but now it was exasperating and irritating.

When they had reached her own room he pressed the command button and allowed her to stumble toward her own bed. She flopped gratefully down with a heavy sigh, a hand twitched in a vague greeting and Vader retreated back to the living room. A moment later he checked up on the adopted thief. Luke was asleep, blond hair arrayed over the soft gray pillow and his breathing was steady and slow. His spindly but muscled arms were splayed about at awkward angles. There did not seem to be a promise of bad dreams for the blond tonight so Vader let him be and retreated back to his own chambers to rest for the next day.


	15. Transition

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke moves in. Doora is super awesom. Gohan is kind of an awful person (but we still like her), Vader has to suffer the Emperor's odious presence for a bit. Jifus has a serious conversation and really kinda hates her job sometimes.

When Agent Kallus met up with partner he was a little concerned with what he found. Agent Tove was staring intently at the holographic projections of what looked like trash. 

“Tove?” He set his cap on the table and moved across the room. The woman rolled her shoulders and gestured to her object of interest. “What is that?’

“These,” she leaned away from the table and stood, “Are four pieces of junk Luke plays with.” 

“I…what?” Giving the boy games he understood, visiting him to see what passed as his toys he did not. “Agent Tove.”

“One thing you learned on our trips, Agent Kallus. What is it?”

“I…learned many things.” He had learned a lot and most it was the sort of investigative skills they didn’t teach at the academy. 

“Clues are everywhere,” Tove tapped her fingers against the table, “Clues and the like are everywhere and these are clues.” 

“I…excuse me, junk? These are comfort…trinkets.”

“Exactly! Luke fiddles with them when he’s distracted or trying to solve a problem or upset. We know that Luke is missing most of his memories from Lord Vader’s report. Even people with amnesia can retain some subconscious memories. I remember one man who was completely blank but could cook well; when he found his home he’d apparently been a third in a marriage the produced nine kids. So he remembered this skill. Luke remembers something.”

“What is it?” Kallus edged the cold cup of caf out of her reach and toward the trash. 

“I don’t know yet.” 

“But you said.”

“I know what I said, Kallus.” Tove dark eyes turned toward him. “I know that there is a clue but I’m not sure what it is yet. It could be in anything now. How he repaired the vaporators? Where they come from, their manufacturer, what planet were the on, all these things can show us a hint into Luke’s mind and what he’s forgotten.”

“And what do you want to do with?”

“By finding where Luke come from we can find the others in his crew.”

“There is no evidence that Luke is actually on the crew.” Kallus pointed out and grimaced when Tove laughed at him. 

“He was following an unknown entity that won a few names in a sabacc game. He showed up a few weeks later on Lothal dressed as a cadet with the required paper and background information. Even if he’s not on the crew itself there is definitely something fishy going on. On the crew or not he is most obviously a grifter. One of the best I’ve ever seen.” She paused and deactivated the holo table. “What did you find?” 

“There’s not much. Imperial records of the Piett family are spotty. Firmus Piett served aboard the Chrimea with Admiral Thrawn but was honorably discharged when Doctor Piett married Lord Vader.” 

“Why?”

“Apparently the suspicion that none of his commanding officers would be impartial with his promotions with Lord Vader as his brother in law. He accepted a commission in the Axxilian Home Fleet though.” 

“Lord Protector Piett is his mother.” 

“Their family is popular on Axxila.” Kallus reported, “High Lord Protector Piett is…probably the foremost authority on pirate hunting and busting spice and gunrunners on the outer rim. Axxila is more or less divided between law breakers and law men.”

“And the husband?”

“A doctor, like Lady Vader, he is also a member of the Mobile Doctors and a part time teacher at Axxila’s medical school.”

“And?” 

“We can’t access any of the record of Lady Vader. Her Clone War file has been sealed and moved and unless we have a very good reason we cannot take a look at the one the Home Fleet has of her. That would be a political nightmare. I believe Lord Vader has taken the liberty of erasing any mentions of her in old media files.” 

“I wouldn’t be surprised.”

“Do you think they’re hiding something? She is only a doctor.” 

“Never underestimate doctors, it will be a very dumb mistake for you to make. Now, forgetting the doc let’s focus on the thief.” Tove unfolded a piece of flimsi and passed it to him. “I wrote down the serial numbers I could find on the parts. This one is the only one that’s complete. I want you to find out what it is, where it comes from and who manufactured it and where it was shipped.” 

“It’s a part of a moisture vaporator,” Kallus said lamely. Tove nodded. “I’ll get started right away.”

#$#$

The bounty that Boba Fett has been following is a slime-ball of a sentient. Slave trader, thief, murderer, and pimp and one of the largest spice dealers in this section of Mandalore. He’s not one to be attached to any particular home world except he’s always had a fondness for this system. Sometimes, when he’s going for some easy money, he works his way through the bounties that the local law enforcement have posted. 

His prey isn’t stupid but he suffers from the usual ailments of petty crime bosses. He was proud and arrogant and too-sure of himself. From his perch on a nearby roof Fett could see the man kicking at a stack of cages. The children locked them them rattled about.

“Come on! We’re on a schedule.” The bounty rubbed the thin beard that was growing over a thick neck and wide, flabby features. “Can’t you idiots move faster?”

“We’re going boss.” Another human groused, “Got to make sure the merchandise is packed proper like. The fuzz have been looking for us.” 

Nechin Lide grumbled and leaned against a particularly tall cage that held a young wookie. “Don’t care about the fuzz, we get good money for these brats. You want a pay-day don’t you?”

“Sure do, boss but you can’t spend money in jail.” 

Their section of the back alley, closed off by abandoned houses and run down streets wasn’t a particularly populated area. No one came down here unless they were criminals or scum or addicts. Which was why Boba was instantly suspicious of the sobbing cries that echoed his direction.

“MAMA!” The voice belonged to a young girl, human. Her dark skin was smeared with dirt and oil and the slight fuzz on her head was tangled with rubble. Sobbing, she stumbled down a nearby street. From his vantage point Fett could see it but he knew the slavers could only hear the girl. “MAMA! Where are you? MAMA!”

The rundown section of the city was too far from any place a mother and her daughter would be. Too closed off with unexploded bombs still nestled in the frames of some houses. There was no logical reason for the girl to be here. 

“Ya hear that?” The fat man rubbed his flabby hands together and grinned. “We have any spare cages?”

“Yeah.” Another man leered. Fett moved to another roof to watch the scene better. “We’ve got some spares. Who wants to go get her?”

“I’ll do it.” Nechin said, “You guys keep loading up these brats. ‘sides,” he spread his hands and grinned, “Who doesn’t trust a face like this?”  
Fett would have sneered. Nechin was overweight, oversized and wore shabby and disgusting clothes. His small blue eyes shifted about, rodent-like and his mouth always seemed to hanging open even when he wasn’t speaking. Adding in the sparse facial hair, the too-shiny bald head and the crooked teeth the man was probably the least trustworthy man Fett had ever seen. 

“I’ll be back, get those kids loaded.” Boba Fett moved along with the man. 

“MAMA! MAMA! Where are you?” 

‘Hey, girlie.” The bounty stepped into the main street, smiling what he probably thought was a friendly smile. “I can help you find your mother.” 

“You can?” She couldn’t have been more than ten or eleven. “Where?”

“Well right this way, of course.” 

“But I saw Mama go that way!” She pointed down the street, “She did! I know she did!” 

“Really?” Boba Fett readied his blaster and changed the setting from stun. On the street Nechin leaned over the little girl. “Now I was thinking I saw her come through my street.” The girl took several steps away from him, leaning against an old wooden crate. 

“I don’t.” She looked frantically from side to side. “I’m not sure.” 

“I’m sure.” If Boba hadn’t been watching carefully he might have missed what happened next. Fear melted off her face and her stance changed completely. With one hand she struck out to land a beautiful punch to Nechin’s flat nose and the other produced a heavy weight stun baton she jammed into his stomach. A faint expression of surprise was seen before the fat man toppled sideways into the wooden crate. Boba Fett blinked and magnified his vision enough to see a section of the nearby wall crumble outward to form a neat lid. It didn’t take long for the victim turned hunter to attach temporary repulsors to the crate and then shove it into another crumbling building. She disappeared from view and re-emerged wearing the clothes typical of a jawa. Fett was even more impressed when a heavy, long box was kicked open to reveal the beautiful and deadly shape of a LK-3098 sniper rifle. 

It took the other slavers a good twenty minutes to realize their boss was still missing. In this time the unknown girl had climbed into a snipers position and was waiting with the eternal patience of a well-practiced shooter. What followed next was far more ruthless and violent than Fett had ever expected. The slavers tumbled from the alley, shouting for their boss. Only to be met with hail of blaster fire. One shot for each slaver, dropping them where they stood. The last one managed to produce his own blaster but took a bolt to the head just a second later. Fett had seen a lot of disturbing things over the years but watching a tiny girl murder an entire gang of slavers was the least of them. 

Later, he dropped into the main police station where they posted the local bounties and found the overweight slaver under heavy guard.

“Who brought him in?” The captain of the precinct stared at Fett curiously before handing over the report. 

“Bounty hunter, no name was given but the money was deposited.” The man said, “Plus his gang is gone and we recovered his latest shipment of slaves.”

“Any idea where she went?”

“She?” 

“He, it. Where they went?” 

“No clue. I didn’t know jawas could be bounty hunters.” The captain sighed, “Dragged the guy in in a crate and just took off as soon as he was paid.” 

“Right.” Boba Fett could only think of a few dozen places where a person like this could be travelling to and from. 

$%$%$

“I think Boba Fett is following me.” Gohan looked away from Ezra and stuck a pin back in her wrist pin-holder.

“What?”

“Who is Boba Fett?” Ezra asked.

“A bounty hunter, the best.” Gohan looked back to the new addition to the team and grimaced. “Do you like the color?”

“It is pretty nice.” Ezra agreed from his place on the stool. “But what about Boba Fett?” 

“He’s a bounty hunter,” Doora said and clambered onto her own chair, “I snatched a bounty right from under his nose. All he did was watch and head to the police station when I was gone. He popped up on Nar Shadda when I was changing ships.”

“What would Fett want with you?” Gohan asked and readjusted the length of Ezra’s pants for a final time. 

“Not sure, if he wanted me dead I’d be dead.” 

“Do you have a bounty?”

“Nope.” 

 

“Then what would he want?”

“Not sure, he didn’t make a move or try to attack so…doesn’t he sometimes contract for Vader?”

“He does.”

“Vader is looking for us.”

“Sound about right.”

“He could be working for him now.” 

“Vader? Isn’t he some sort of commander?”

“A force sensitive, lightsaber wielding Supreme Commander of the Imperial Navy,” Gohan frowned at Ezra, “You need to go take this off so I can finish it.” 

“Okay,” Ezra shifted uneasily, “But why is Vader looking for you?” 

“We stole one his antique ships and sold it to Black Sun.” Doora replied. Ezra blinked. 

“Wow. Is that the kind of stuff I’m going to be doing?”

“Yep, if everything goes according to plan. Doora, find out what Fett wants. Figure out what he’s planning and then report back.” 

“You want me to go now?” 

“Take Aphra.” 

“Where am I being taken?” Aphra joined the rest of the crew and gave Ezra a thumbs up. “Looking good, Bridger, that color suits you.” 

“Thanks.”

“You,” Gohan pointed to Aphra and then Doora, “Two are going to give Boba Fett the shakedown. Find out what he wants and make sure that he’s not a threat to us.” 

“So if he is?” Aphra wondered. 

“Then take care of him.” Gohan shrugged and gave Ezra a smile when he blinked and leaned away. “I take very good care of my crew. Speaking of which, the med-droid wants to see you after you eat lunch.” 

“Okay.” 

“He’s a nice med-droid. Been here since the base was built by seppies during the war,” Gohan began packing her sewing kit together and gestured for Ezra to step off the stool. “He doesn’t mind us living here so long as he gets to give us check-ups.” 

“I’ve never met any Separatists.” Ezra ducked behind the curtain and changed back into his orange jumpsuit. “Why do you live here anyway?”

“This base got lost when the war ended.”

“How do you lose a military base?”

“Ha, the Empire has misplaced and entire fleet of star destroyers.”

“Whole civilizations go missing.” Aphra added, “Entire languages and cultures just vanish off the face of the universe. Missing a military base isn’t that strange considering.”

“So since everyone forgot it existed we can live here without anything like a mortgage or door to door salesmen, I like it here too.”

“How are you liking it?’ Ezra shrugged when three pairs of eyes focused on him.

“It’s comfortable and warm and there’s food. Plus stuff to do so it’s pretty great.” Ezra wiggled excitedly, “When do I get to do that actual stuff?” 

“When you don’t look like a street rat anymore.” Gohan said, “To be a grifter you need to be able to become anyone and anything and that means you need to have a healthy and average body weight. So that means you have to put on more weight.” 

“Alright.” 

“Hey, if we’re going to be giving Boba Fett that shake down can I take my plasma cannon?” Doora poke Aphra, “We can bring the murder kits too! You little toys will be perfect for taking out bounty hunter.” 

“I like the idea,” Aphra agreed, “Let’s go see if their ready for a field test.” Gohan shrugged when Ezra sent a confused glance. Aphra and Doora abandoned them to their clothes fitting. 

$#$#

“Why is the room pink?” Luke looked back at the doctor just in time to see an irritated grimace cross her face. “Errr.” 

“I wanted the room to be a different color than just gray and he took that as a chance to be a smart-ass.” Jifus grumbled, “He has no idea how to bluff.” 

“Okay.” Luke adjusted his bag on his shoulders and waved at the lean man in a butlers uniform. “Hello!” 

“It is good to see you back again, Lady Vader.” The man bowed, “I have dinner waiting for you in the dining room.” 

“Thanks, Niles. This is Luke,” Luke swayed a bit when she put her hands on his shoulders. “Our son, just adopted him.” Niles was professional enough not to let his shock show but not skilled enough to conceal the rampaging curiosity. “Luke, this is Niles, our steward.”

“A pleasure to meet you, young Lord.” 

“Oh, jeez, you don’t have to call me that. I’m just Luke.” 

“The cook is probably working in the kitchen. We’ll introduce you to him after I show you around.” Jifus waved the steward off. “Come on, your room is this way.” 

Luke waved a final time at the steward before he was steered out of the living room and down one of the connecting halls. Tucked away into a small alcove up a short flight of stairs was Luke’s room. It was a sizeable one too, with its own refresher and a holo-unit. The thief gaped and took a running leap onto the bed. He bounced across the comforter and whooped excitedly. Pillows scattered to the floor.

“Is this really all mine?” He didn’t fake his excitement at having so much space to himself. Luke couldn’t believe he’d get so much luxury. Jifus laughed. 

“It’s all yours, Luke. Your closet is through there so when we get you new clothes you’ll have a place to put them. Plus, your desk with a few bookshelves and some…”

“What is this?” Luke picked up a plush, stuffed nerf. His confusion and wonder was almost enough to make Jifus laugh again. He poked at the nerf a few times and held it toward her. 

“A stuffed animal,” she shrugged, “every kid needs one.” 

“I’m thirteen.” 

“So?” She raised an eyebrow and took a seat on the bed next to Luke. “I took mine with me to med-school and then to every posting I had during the war. My old stuffed animal is in my room right now. They sort of act like an anchor for you thoughts of your family so when your alone and hold it you won’t be so alone.”

“Thanks I guess.” Luke blushed, “But a stuffed nerf?” 

“I didn’t pick it out,” she said, “It was probably Niles. It’s a present to you.” 

“It’s really soft.” Luke pet the fluffy animal distractedly and then glanced back up at her. “I really get this whole room?” 

“Sure do.” Jifus grinned when Luke gave an excited wiggle. He carefully set his stuffed nerf on the biggest pillow and stood up. “Do you want to see the conservatory?”

“The what?”

“Ohhh, you’ll like this.” She gestured for him to follow her out of the room and back into the living room. “So here’s a fun fact, on the Imperial Center if you are rich and famous and don’t have an enormous conservatory then no one takes you seriously. Apparently these things are a big deal here because there aren’t a lot of a species that can go a long time without seeing green plants.” 

“Okay.” 

“And since this place is mostly metal and gray and ships having a conservatory is actually pretty necessary. Most blocks have one or two and no matter where they are on the planet they’re taken care of. Way before we got married an architect convinced your father to install what is probably the most impressive one on the planet.” 

“So it’s a garden.” 

“Basically, but it’s a nice garden.” 

“Where is he anyway?”

“Off meeting someone,” Luke noticed the cagey look in her eyes and wanted to press for an actual answer but decided to keep quiet. “Anyway, do you want to see the conservatory?” 

“Sure!” He felt like he could vibrate out of his skin. Several days in close quarters with his new parents had been an interesting experience and he’d probably seen a side of Vader that no one else had. Being a son was whole new experience for him and he wasn’t sure he hated it either. Luke was lead through a set of glass doors and into an enormous conservatory. 

“Oh, wow.” The conservatory was overflowing with plants. Trees and vines that loomed impressively with dozens of bushes and flowers that bloomed cheerfully under the artificial light. From where he stood he couldn’t see the other side of the room. He glanced up to see the transparisteel ceiling and found that this also formed most of the wall he could see. “WOW!’

“My favorite room in the residence except my own room.” Jifus grinned, “Nothing ever tops a good bed and some decent sleep.” 

“This is amazing!” 

“I’m not kidding about it being the best. All of those shows about rich people and their homes keep coming to me asking to let them tour the house. Our garden is the object of envy of ever Grand Moff and Admiral I know.”

Luke took a step forward and glanced back at her. 

“Go on, take a tour of the place. I’ll let you do it on your own if you like. I’m going to put my stuff up and when you’re done head to the dining room so we can eat.” 

“Okay,” Luke agreed breathlessly and took off to get a better look at the conservatory. Jifus watched him disappear and headed toward the kitchen. Where she found the cook and the butler conspiring over a steaming pot. 

“My lady!’ the cook, a round and friendly face twi’lek waved. “I heard you’ve adopted! Tell me about him.”

“You are a terrible gossip, Niles.” Jifus grinned, “Yeah, we’ve adopted. Try and make him feel at home here. He’s an ex-stormtrooper cadet from Lothal. He’s not really…normal or used to anything like stability.” 

“I’ll feed him all of his favorites,” the cook promised. “He will get fat like me and then he will be happy because who can be unhappy with food?”

“Plenty of people.” Jifus took her usual seat at the kitchen work table, “Niles, you looked surprised.” 

“When you asked me to prepare a room for a long-term visitor I thought it might be a member of your family, milady.” 

“He nearly had his own nerf when you asked him to pick up the stuff animal.” 

“Which Luke loved,” Jifus relayed, “He thought it was great. He’d never had one before.” 

“A travesty,” Niles said, “We must get him more.” 

“We’ll see about that.” 

“And where is Mr. Jifus Piett?” Deno asked, waving his ladle her direction. Jifus laughed quietly. 

“He had a meeting to go to as soon as he hit dirt. He’ll be back tonight.”

“You have a lot of messages that came in while you were gone, milday.” 

“Oh, boy.” 

“I took the liberty of putting them up in your office.” 

“Oh joy.” 

“You’re welcome, milady.” Niles said cheerfully. 

When Luke emerged into the dining room his face was glowing and he started talking instantly. He told her about how he had met the gardener and how he had found a few different species of flowers. Jifus tolerated his excited babbling with her usual patience. When she excused herself to attend to her waiting paperwork he turned his attention to the cook and the butler. They indulged his excitement with ease. 

#$#$#

“A child, my apprentice? Truly your wife has more of a hold over you than I thought. I believed you were wise enough to allow yourself to be ruled by another relentless harpy.” Vader remained silent under the Emperor’s insults. “Tell me of him.”

“A Stormtrooper cadet from Lothal, the boy is unremarkable and easily controlled. He will provide an excellent distraction for the doctor.” 

 

“A distraction? What use is the boy? Surely you are not seeking to create an heir apparent for the Empire, my apprentice?”

“No master,” Vader paused, “The doctor is unable to carry children.”

“This was not in her file.” 

“No, she only revealed this to me in a moment of vulnerability,” Vader lied easily. “I am unaware as to why this is the case.”

“Then she must be asserting her female need to have a child.” The emperor waved his hand and Vader wondered if the man knew how ridiculous he sounded. He knew that if he revealed any part of this conversation to any of the ISB agents he had worked with in the last half year they would all attempt to remove his head. Agent Banka would probably be the first in line to destroy the Emperor with her nasty collection of poisons. Tove would be next and given half the opportunity would probably beat the Emperor senseless with her fists alone. It was probably a good thing that Palpatine was so far removed from his agents and soldiers. 

“Senator Organa is becoming a problem again. He needs careful looking after. While I have no concerns of his Queen causing trouble in the senate the same cannot be said for Bail Organa. I have applied certain pressures to him and we will see the outcome in the coming weeks.” 

“Yes, my master.”

#$#$#

One of the most jarring differences between his first marriage and his second was that it was not a secret. He did not have to sneak out of the temple to see his wife. He could leave the Senate and fly back to his residence and know that him meeting a woman would not raise eyebrows. If there weren’t any emergencies or outbreaks or any sort of troubles that his wife would need to respond to he knew where to find her. The lack of secrecy in this marriage was a peculiar change of pace. 

He wandered through his residence and saw the twi’lek cook he had hired to keep Jifus from dying prematurely of malnutrition, cleaning the kitchen up. The steward, a stuffy sort that had only been hired after Tarkin had thrown him out, was dusting the single painting hanging in the living room. 

“Where is my wife?” He asked. It was unnecessary to do so but he found if he used the butler’s services it often made him feel better about working for him. 

“In her office, milord.”

“And my son?” 

“Already in bed, my lord. You have eighty requests for meetings tomorrow morning. They are waiting on your desk.” 

“Very well.” He left the man to his work and proceeded to the tucked away section of their home that they had decided to gift to Luke. He carefully stepped into the room to find the short blond was buried under a heavy duvet. On his nightstand an empty mug sat, probably with the leftovers of a sort of tea and crumbs from long-eaten cookies. His duffle bag was still slung over the chair and he the blanket had been pulled up to his shoulders. Here he looked smaller than ever. Oddly enough a stuff nerf animal was perched carefully one of the unused pillows. Satisfied, he left the boy to his sleep and proceeded to find his spouse.

‘You seem concerned.” Jifus was pacing around her office, tossing a stylus between her hands carefully. 

“A fantastic deduction, I never would have guessed!” She retorted, still pacing. 

“What is your malfunction?”

“I don’t have a malfunction but what I do have is the crippling realization that I have no idea about parenting! I have no idea what I’m doing! The longest I’ve spent watching children were the three weeks for my best friend while he was recovering from a heart attack! Even then I had their nanny to help.” With a sudden groan of despair Jifus flopped onto her couch and covered her eyes with her arm, “It’s hopeless; I’m going to be a terrible mother.” 

“You have given up so easily.” Vader said.

“Who wants a mother like me? I’ve made a hundred idiot mistakes in my life and now I’m adding a kid to the mix. Gahhh!”

“It is not wise or fair on yourself to give into despair so easily.” Vader joined his wife on the couch, taking the last few feet that her boots did not reach. 

“Humph.”

“He seems well, even for having parents such as us.” 

“He’s been here for less than a day.” 

“He is in bed on time.” 

“You forcibly tucked him in several time in a row to make sure he got the memo. By the way, I never thought I’d live to see that day.”

“Luke is a smart child.” Vader said, “the lesson only took a few reminders.” 

“So we got him to go to bed on time. I’m not confident in our ability to keep the kid alive.” She groaned again. “I don’t know the first thing about kids and even less about teenagers.” 

“They are not so different from adults only that they lack significant critical thinking skills and the desire to shower.” Jifus snorted.

“Did you have that problem a lot with your kid?”

“No, she had a keen sense of smell and would not tolerate stench but the point stands. Furthermore, you are a capable woman. I am sure we can succeed together.” 

“I hate how confident you are.” 

“Really?”

“Last time I felt this overwhelmed I was being arrested for treason.” 

Vader’s hairless eyesbrows rose, “Really?” 

“Yes, long story short it turned out I was right and they were wrong and those…generals needed to be less sensitive.” 

“You have led an interesting and varied life.” Vader wondered what to do next and awkwardly pat her knee once. “What were you arrested for?”

Jifus lifted her hand off her face and propped herself up enough to squint at him. “That is classified also embarrassing. I don’t want to talk about it but I was arrested for treason a few times. Accused of sedition a couple dozen and…my career has been a long and dangerous one. Though not as interesting as yours I’m sure.”

“Perhaps far more entertaining.” 

“Maybe.” Having company seemed to have calmed the woman down but she was still clearly unhappy. After several moments of silence she asked. “What are we going to do about Luke’s school?”

“I will have my aide look for a suitable school. There are several ones that ought to do well for him. Many of them are within Imperial City and are used by members of the Senate.” 

“Speaking of the senate, how did your meeting with the Emperor go?” 

“He has said little in regards to Luke and seems to have very little interest in either of you.” 

Jifus sighed deeply and let her arm flop back over her face. “Our staff likes Luke at least but I’m not sure what I should do about work.”

“You will go as usual. I understand that a peculiar case came in this morning that you are needed to look after.”

“Yes, they think it might be something I came across on one of my missions. A rare disease that’s not really in the medical journals.”

“You’ve seen it?”

“Yep, once. Do you have any important meetings tomorrow?”

“All of them with sycophants and fools and all can be rescheduled. I will keep Luke company.”

“You’ll give him all the rules? ‘Cause I didn’t. I just told him to go to bed on time and make sure he was always polite with the staff.”

“I will inform him of the rules. You are needed in the morning; perhaps you should go to bed as well.” 

“I probably should.” Jifus didn’t move. 

“You have reservations about tomorrow.” 

“The last place I saw this particular mess was at my posting during the war.” She crossed her arms and rolled onto her side to face the back of the couch. Her voice came out only slightly muffled. “He was a full grown clone trooper, called himself Treely. He told me it was because he liked trees. We didn’t get a lot of clone troopers here because we were a hospital for,” Jifus snorted bitterly, “other soldiers, proper ones. He was friendly kid but still stern in the way that most clones were. Anyway, he was admitted when his legs got crushed right off when a transport vehicle fell on him.” Vader wondered if he had ever encountered the trooper, even in passing. “We ran the standard tests and found the little virus that had wiped out a whole bunch of cities a few decades back. The only they had been able to do with it had been to sterilize and keep it from being contagious. I don’t know who this thing showed back up but it had and when we identified it we were able to keep him with us. The institute that these cases were usually studied at had just been bombed. Most of the hard evidence and other things were destroyed. Anything that could be archived had already been saved in eight other locations otherwise we would have lost everything.” She sighed and began tapping her toes against the cushion. “Military commanders wanted us to get rid of him, toss him in a shallow grave or something. Except this was the first time that this virus had been seen in decades so we kept him. Watched him and tried our damnest to study the virus while we were drowning in meatball surgery and artillery shells. Didn’t do him any good, the damn thing ate his heart muscles and nervous system up in less than six months.” Her voice wobbled and he heard a rattling intake of breath. Vader set his hand on her ankle and waited for her to continue. “We couldn’t bury him; he had the potential secret to unlock the cure so he let us send his body off to a university that would be willing to continue our work. Treely just asked that we bury his helmet so he could at least pretend that he was buried somewhere nice instead of being dissected. So we did.” 

“What happened?”

“The transport ship got caught up in a pissing contest of a battle. It was destroyed, along with most of the research we had managed to work on and had been sending along with his body. Tomorrow morning I have to face that little girl and tell her parents that there’s probably no way she’s going to survive the rest of the year because I have to start out almost from scratch. I don’t remember enough of it.” 

“Surely you kept back up data.” Vader said. 

“Destroyed when we got shelled the next time,” Jifus’ voice cracked and he noticed her gray eyes mist over. “All of our patients got killed, most of our doctors too. Not a lot of the original crew made it our alive.” 

Vader wondered at the burden his wife carried. How much more impossible it seemed than any the Jedi had carried, than any that even Padme had ever been holding up. Jifus cared for people and their motivations. She cared for the small details of their lives and their happiness. Padme had cared for people as well but on the much more distant level of trying to repair their institutions. Jifus’ career had been built taking care of people on a deeply personal level and he wondered just how it affected her. 

His life a slave and then as a Jedi has always held him distant from people. As a jedi he had walked light years above the heads of average citizens. Descending only long enough to install a stop gap measure against whatever chaos the Order did not want unleashed. As Sith he had been the harbinger of destruction and now as a political dissident there was still a huge distance between himself and the people he wanted to help

“I have to do this. I’m one of the only people who can but I know that it’s going to hurt even more than last time when they die.”

“There is no guarantee that you will not discover a cure.” 

“In six months, there’s not much of a way. Cures like this take…years. I can’t use a thirteen year old as a clinical trial.” Jifus seemed to sag even deeper into the couch. I read the file and…she’s the same age as Luke.” Vader sensed that there was very little he could do except stay where he was. After another hour of laying silently Jifus began to move. “I’m going to bed.” She said shortly. “I’ll see you tomorrow night.” Without another word she vanished from her office and into the hallway leaving Vader feeling just a little confused. 

#$#$#

At 0530 the next morning Lady Jifus Vader was staring through the observation window at her patient and the assembled family. Luke had still been asleep when she left and her husband shut away in his own chambers. She wished she could summon the familiar empty feeling her old comping mechanism had given her. Instead she fiddled nearly restlessly with her stylus. 

“Do you want me to get you a cup of caf?” Asked her favorite intern, “Before you have to talk to them?”

“Just bring it to me while I’m in there.” She ordered, feeling her temper shorten much faster than it usually would. With a deep breath she pressed the door controls and entered into the long-term patient suite. The man and woman stood and Jifus nearly flinched when they recognized her and their eyes went dark. “Your Majesty, Senator I’m the attending doctor on this particular case. I have some familiarity with the virus and hope to do as much as possible for your daughter.”

“Lady Vader.”

“Please,” she held up a hand, “Doctor Jifus if it makes you more comfortable.” 

“Of course,” The man said stiffly. The doctor edged around them to see the dark haired princess sitting upright in the bed. Small hands were folded over her lap, even with the ID tag around her wrist and wearing her hospital scrubs the young woman looked regal.

“Hello,” Jifus forced a smile and held out her hand. The princess took it with great dignity. “I’m Dr. Jifus and I’ll be taking care of you.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Dr. Jifus.”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Princess Leia.”


	16. Father and Son

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vader hangs out with Luke. Other people make appearances.

Darth Vader slept a dreamless sleep. With nights of increasing frequency, he slept more and more until he had reached almost six hours of sleep a night. Even with the almost argument he’d had with Jifus Vader slept well enough. She hadn’t been mad at him; only frustrated with the helpless circumstance that she found herself in. 

When he woke up the next morning and went through the complicated routine needed to get him re-armored he was a little surprised to find Luke’s signature already awake. He had expected the boy to take advantage of his new luxuries and sleep the morning away. Vader hadn’t even planned on waking him up early. A cursory search through the living quarters revealed that Luke was eating his breakfast at the kitchen work table. 

Deno was carefully adding a dollop of white cream to the porridge. Vader noted the size of Luke’s eyes as he watched the cook add a few pieces of minced fruit. “And that is how you make even the most bland food interesting!” Deno proclaimed. “Always add fruit and cream.”

“That seems extravagant,” Luke said and began remixing his breakfast, “I think you ruined the rest of the oatmeal.”

“I added fruit and cream!” Deno wailed and covered his eyes, “Helping you will be so much work! I know it. I just know it! We cannot have bland food in this house! No! I will not allow it. So long as I cook I will make sure that everyone eats well.” He waved his cream covered spoon about and booped Luke’s nose. The blond’s face wrinkled up and he reached up to rub the cream away. “Understood?”

“Sure thing.” Luke agreed, “But it’s just food.” 

“Just.” Deno clutched his chest and leaned away, muttering. “Oh my goodness.” 

“Did you say what I think you said?” Niles called from the pantry. 

“He said it is just food!” Deno cried, wailing dramtically and pressing his hands to his eyes. “Just food!”

 

Luke caught sight of Vader and waved with his spoon. “I think he’s been a little dramatic.” Vader emerged into the kitchen with a silent nod to the ‘swooning’ cook. 

“Perhaps but I know your mother has plied you with more than enough pastries to know your opinion on sweet things for breakfast.” He turned to Deno. “He is leveraging for more sweets for meals and sugar added to everything. Do not fall for his manipulations.” 

“Plied with sweets.” Niles emerged from the pantry. His sleeves pushed up to his elbows and his apron covered in flour. “Lady Vader bribes?”

“Shamelessly,” Vader said and looked own just in time to see Luke poke his breakfast with shy humor. “As Luke well knows.” 

“I wasn’t used to civilian clothes,” Luke defended himself to the accusatory tone. “I might as well have gotten something out of the whole thing.” 

“Perhaps.” Luke focused on his breakfast and avoided Deno’s gaze. Vader didn’t need to be in the kitchen. He didn’t eat or drink anymore but he did enjoy the atmosphere that hung around it. Ever since he’d married his wife Vader found the universe was becoming lighter. “Some proper compensation wa necessary.” 

“I think so.” 

“Hmph!” Deno glowered mockingly at the boy and turned back to his stove. “Fine! Play me for the poor fool! I see how you care about me!” 

“You do not need to be so melodramatic.” Vader said and the twi’lek only shrugged at him. Niles however, laughed.

“I don’t think Deno could live if he didn’t make a fuss.”

“Luke,” Ignoring the unruly staff, Vader turned to the boy, “When you are finished come to my office. There are matter we need to discuss.” 

“Uh.” Luke nodded, unable to speak further with his mouth full. Vader swept form the room without waiting for a reply. “Did I do something wrong?” Luke asked once he’d swallowed down a mouthful of oatmeal. Deno shrugged and Niles shook his head. 

“I wouldn’t worry. If your…father is angry with you I am sure he would make his irritation much more obvious.”

“I dunno.” Luke slumped, “You said the doc…Moms already gone to the hospital?”

“Yes, she works almost constantly these days. She’s very good at her work. Very dedicated to her patients.” 

“I was one of her patients. She came to my academy and I guess I caught her eye. I…that’s a weird thing to say isn’t it. Like she went window shopping for a son and picked me out like I was an accessory.” 

“I would not think of it like that. Lady Vader does not shop. She only goes in for dress fittings when there is a special occasional that needs her appearance.”

“She usually ends up wearing hospital scrubs?”

“Most of the time, sometimes other things but not always.” 

“I think that’s pretty great. To be that dedicated to people and helping others.” Luke picked out the fruit piece by piece. It didn’t matter if he was stuck back on his seppie base with his crew or a Stormtrooper cadet. He always seemed to be eating oatmeal for breakfast. 

“I am sure she will cut back on her hours to make sure she sees you.” Niles said hurriedly, “Do not worry. I have full confidence.”

“Thanks but that wasn’t something I was worried about.” Luke said and finished the glop as fast as he could manage. His curiosity was burning again. “Where is his office?”

“His office is…I’ll show you.” Nile removed his apron and led Luke through the residence. It was a lot bigger than he’d imagined it. Above the expansive kitchens and the rooms that were clustered next to each that the Vader’s occupied the rest of the building was basically empty. The hall ways on the upper floors were cold and formal. “This is where they would entertain guests if they ever had any. As it is Lord and Lady Vader never entertain. We keep these rooms clean as a formality. Really she and Lord Vader inhabit only a small section of the residence. Sometimes officers can visit to discuss military matters with your father.”

“Is this the room that the ship got stolen from?” Luke passed a very familiar ballroom and had to hide down a smirk. He remembered this room for sure. He also knew where the office was considering he’d spliced into it before. It would look suspicious if he knew on his first day here though.

“How did you hear about that?”

“Are you kidding me? It was everywhere. Thieves broke into Darth Vader’s house and stole his ship.” 

“Why would it be this room?” 

“Because its only one that can hold that size of ship. Plus, that section of the wall comes down and…it looks like it can be moved by crane or something. I’m not sure how it got in here but I do know it got out.” 

“You are a strange boy.” 

“I was a Stormtrooper cadet.” Luke shrugged, “And I spent the most of my life on the streets. You pick up a few things.”

“Of course.” Niles said. “This way, Young Master.” Nile delighted in the deep blush that scrawled across Luke’s cheeks and ears and neck. He thought the boy might protest but he only ducked his head and followed quietly. When they reached Vader’s office Niles gave him a shallow bow and left him just outside the door. 

Luke waited until the butler had vanished around the corner before knocking. He jumped as the door opened and the now familiar hissing respirator was heard.

“Come in.” His father ordered and Luke had to fight down the reflexive terror before slipping through the door. The office looked almost the same as it had been Luke had broken in. The desk hadn’t moved but a painting had been added to the wall beside the desk and the appointment chairs looked a lot more comfortable than they had been. 

“What’s this?” He looked closely at the painting. It wasn’t a famous one and it probably wasn’t worth as much as some of the Nubian artist Palo were. Luke examined with the a critical and admired the work. “Who painted this?”

“Jifus…your mother did.” Vader said, “It was a gift to me for our wedding.” 

“Why would she paint you something?” 

“It is a skill she had worked long to yield with some skill. It does not come naturally to her. She has a steady hand and patience to learn the necessary techniques.” 

“I like it.” It was a stormy painting; depicting an honest to goodness wooden sailing ship being tossed around in a fierce storm. 

“There are a particular kind of fish on Axxila that do not come near metal boats nor are they foolish enough to fall into the usual traps that are set out on their waters. To catch them the fishermen have to use these wooden vessels. The fish a very good at sensing the electromagnetic currents of modern technologies.” 

“They’re sailing those boats just to catch fish.” 

“It is a staple.”

“Wow.” Luke looked closer at the people in the background. Their faces were indistinct but their bodies conveyed strength, conviction, and grace. “What did you make her?”

“Nothing.” He blinked and turned to his father with a frown. 

“Why not?”

“It is not concern of yours.” Vader said shortly, “Come. Sit.” Luke obeyed and found that his feet did not reach even halfway down the chair. He felt stupidly short and almost like he was going in for a job interview. “The first order of business is your schooling. There are several I have noted and have information packets sent over.” Luke accepted a bundle of flimsi and winched. “You do not have to choose today. Until your mother has decreed that you are up to date with your inoculations you will not be attending school. You have four more weeks.” 

“Okay.” Luke began flipping through the first one. He immediately rolled his eyes at the propaganda neatly printed on the inside and the glossy pictures of smiling humans. The next two had the same problem. The fourth actually had more than just humans. There was a carefully blank faced twi’lek woman who could have easily been over 80 years old. A rodian teenager waved from beside a flight simulator and a beaming Tholothian wearing overalls and holding a chunk of rock. 

“Secondly,” He looked up and marked the packet he was reading. “Your adoption will be a subject of some speculation. Ignore the press and rumor mongering Considering the unique position I hold in the Empire and my relationship with the Emperor it is feasible you will meet him one day.” Luke immediately blanched.

“I can’t meet him. He’ll hate me.”

“Perhaps.” The reforming Sith wondered if he ought to tell Luke of the antagonistic relationship that existed between himself and the Emperor. If he should mention any of the abuses he’d been deal in recent years. Luke was only thirteen, an accomplished thief and obviously dangerous to the right people. Actually, now that he thought about Luke’s crew usual motivations he wondered if it would be feasible to unleash the short blond on him. 

That wasn’t a bad plan. Luke’s crew had feed Jabba to his own rancor. Perhaps they would force feed Plapatine his own manipulations. Vader blinked to erase the wholly entertaining thought of the Imperial throne being scammed into the hands of an amoral degenerate thief. 

“You are more likely to entertain him. He...found great humor in my marriage.” 

“I noticed his wasn’t very nice at your wedding.” Luke said. “He had a lot of double edge insults.” Vader watched the boy shrug. “Most of the cadet’s sort of overran Agent Kallus’ office. We don’t get much entertainment in the academy.” 

“I see.” Well that was embarrassing. He knew that the wedding had been the subject of a lot of gossip but if a 13-year-old could parse together the underhanded insults then he wondered who else had. “Thirdly, there are a few engagements you may need to be present for. Before you begin school I will have you trained in the social etiquette you may need to know.” Luke slumped miserably in his chair. “These are necessary to survive Imperial Court. While I will do my upmost to keep you from having to engage in many of the usual spectacles I know that there are a few…engagements you will be attending.” 

“Great.” Luke groused but didn’t complain further. 

“You will also be fitted with the necessary clothes for such engagements. Fortunately for you I believe that children follow the mother. Axxilian formal wear is superior in comfort and style in every sense. Excellent for concealed weapons.” 

“Errr, will I be allowed to carry weapons?”

“You are cleared for eight different kinds of blasters, Luke. It would be foolish to allow you to attend these viper pits without weaponry.” 

“Does the doc…Mother agree?” 

“My Mother-in-Law had no less than eight weapons on her at my wedding. This included a flash grenade.” 

“Geez.” Luke rubbed his head. “Mother-in...I have a grandmother!” 

“And a couple of weeks ago I didn’t have anyone. What’s she like? Is she anything like Mother? Do I have a Grandfather? Any uncle or aunt? Do I have cousins?” Luke nearly wriggled with excitement. So may opportunities for networking. So many people for alibi’s! To his surprise the Sith leaned away a bit as if gamely weathering his questions. 

“You have one uncle. Your grandparents on your mother’s side and a number of unofficially adopted cousins who are children of the doctor’s good friends.”

“Have you met them?”

“They were not invited to the wedding.” 

“That’s a no.” Luke vibrated in place as he waited for Vader to continue. 

“Fourthly, there are rules I am sure you were not made aware of. Your bedtime is set; you will adhere to it. You will be expected to make full use of your manners. I will not tolerate any rudeness to the staff or myself.” Luke looked insulted. 

“Behave yourself. Furthermore, because of my elevated rank it is possible you will be a target for manipulations and kidnapping.” Vader did wonder what would happen if some unsuspecting bounty hunter tried to cash in on Luke. The idiot would probably never be heard from again. “You will take great pains to avoid these instances.”

“Is this Civilian Life for Idiots 101?” Luke crossed his arms, disgruntled. “I could have figured this much out on my own.”

“When you do enter school you will be expected to behave there as well. I do not anticipate this being much trouble as you have been to many academies. Their rules may be more lax than you are used to.” 

“That so?” Luke had gotten in trouble a lot for his sarcasm and wondered if he had to erase that from his personality here. 

“Indeed.” Vader said mildly, “you may even be able to eat lunch without sitting at attention.” Luke bite down on his smirk but ducked his head.” They sat in silence for a moment and Luke wondered why there were no windows in the office. When he voiced the questions the Sith gave him an answer. “I conduct sensitive meetings here and keep a good amount of classified information here. It is not wide to have a viewport for my enemies to spy on me through or attempted assassinations.” 

“That makes sense.” Luke had already known the answer but asking questions like a clueless 13-year-old had gotten him more information out of people than they would ever reveal to anyone else. He drummed his heels against the chair and hummed to himself. 

“Here is your security clearance and comlink and identification card.” Vader set those on his desk. “You will need them to travel around the Imperial City.” 

“Alright.”

A stack of credits joined the cards on the table. “Carry at least this much with you at all times. In the inner pockets of your clothes. You do not know when you will need them. Do not spend them pointlessly. You will be given an allowance.” 

“Really?” Luke blinked, “What am I going to do with it?”

“I am sure you will figure it out. Also, your new datapad is in your room.”

“What’s wrong with my old one?” 

“It is obsolete technology. They were old in the Clone War.”

“I guess but it’s not like they’re cheap. I can’t afford much.” He blew out an irritated huff. “Datapads are expensive but I don’t need to be bribed with shiny stuff.”

“This is not a bribe.” Vader said and stood up. “Come.” He led Luke from his office to the conservatory. There Luke found himself under careful interrogation by his adoptive father. He had to pull come particularly impressive lies out of his rear to try and avoid talking about his first ten years. The first ten years he couldn’t remember. 

As they walked around the conservatory. It enormous and impressive and fit for a Sith Lord. Luke remembered the man from his dreams. He wanted to ask Vader if dreams meant anything. If they could tell you something about the past or the future. Luke stayed silent and calm and said nothing out of the ordinary. 

#$#$#

Obi Wan Kenobi had spent an unpleasant amount of time in a dingy bar on Nar Shadda waiting for his Rebellion contact. He was sober at the moment, painfully so. The only thoughts ringing through his head were those of Luke and Anakin. 

Luke had been such a cheerful boy with easy affection and impish smiles. His loved his Aunt and his Uncle dearly which had alarmed Obi Wan. He might have left Luke with the Larses but he’d always thought that Owen’s standoffishness would do something to Luke’s enthusiasm. This was not the case. As Luke got older Owen had been molded into an excellent caregiver. Certainly he’d been strict but to protect Luke form the horrors of the outside it was understandable. Beru had probably been exactly like Shmi Skywalker; kind and generous and sturdy. He hadn’t wanted to take Luke from his relatives but the situation had forced his hand. 

Vader’s activities had picked up and it had looked like he was coming back to Tatooine. This was not the case. Whatever fit Vader had thrown it had been temporary. Agents confirmed that Luke was not in any danger only once Obi Wan had removed him from the homestead. Following orders left by Yoda the Jedi had performed a rather hasty procedure that had left his dizzy for days. He’d locked Luke’s memories away and hopefully deep enough that they couldn’t be found by anyone. The effort was to help Luke become the Jedi his father had never been. For Luke to take up the mantle as Jedi Knight and protector. 

Obi Wan wiped down a grimy mug and considered just how spectacularly that plan had backfired. Luke had woken up and had been consumed by terror and then he’d vanished into the streets of the city. Leaving Obi Wan empty handed and fearing for the blonde’s life. He’d searched each place he could think of to find Luke. Half-way houses, orphanages, social services, the usual gangs, a few dozen other places and he eventually forced himself to investigate the brothels of the undercity. 

Nothing. Luke had vanished into the woodwork. Obi Wan never returned to the desert planet and only heard of Jabba the Hutts death through the word of mouth of a few dozen drunken Stormtroopers. The Force had poked him unkindly at this point and Obi Wan knew that Luke had to be involved. Still, even for his impressive investigative skills he found nothing. 

“Moping still, old man?” Obi Wan stifled a sigh and watched the now familiar ISB agent take her seat at the bar. 

“Still eating breakfast in a bar, Agent?”

“When the food is as good as this? Hells yes.” Agent Banaka waved at the portly cook that watched through the service window. “The usual, my babe.” 

“I’m spitting in your breakfast!” 

“Hey!” Banaka spread her hands in a mock form of surrender and laughed, “After I ran those spice dealers out of here? Where’s my thanks?”

“In the upper city where you should be!” 

“Rent is cheaper down here.” Banaka laughed to herself and smirked at Obi Wan. “You look sad. Well, sadder than usual. What’s up?”

“My nephew is still missing.” He said and set the mug down. “My brother is dead and I am working in a very sad little bar to try and afford a ticket off this mudhole. An ISB agent continually antagonizes me.” 

“Sounds rough,” Banaka said without sympathy. “Too bad too. I was going to share a juicy piece of gossip with you that just got released on my favorite holo-rag.”

“You are an ISB agent.” Obi Wan sighed, “Don’t you have better things to do?”

“I investigate violent crimes all day. Murder and homicides all across the planet and galaxy. Keeping up with frivolous stuff keeps me sane.”

Obi Wan had steadfastly ignored the agent for the first few weeks of her catching breakfast right before closing. Until she’d run out a pair of spice merchants out of the neighborhood and donated a huge amount to the local community center to keep its doors open. She was still an Imperial agent though, so Obi Wan still didn’t like her. “I didn’t realize you investigated homicides.”

“Usually ones where the jurisdiction is iffy. If neither planet wants it then my crew takes over. We’re only a small part of the ISB. I’ll leave the blood sucking lechery to my Core associates.” She blinked into her caf and slurped noisily. “What do you care? Though, I don’t blame you for hating me on sight.” Banaka slumped in her seat and fiddled with her rank bars. “There are too many shitty officers for any of us to be liked on sight. Only die-hard Imperialists like us without speaking to us. I’d say ‘Not all officers’ but that just sounds…stupid and totally unfair.” 

“It does sound stupid,” Obi Wan agreed and sucked in a deep breath when he reached a sudden realization. “Agent!” He didn’t want to use the Imperial for this but if he’d never manage to find Luke one his own. If the woman was discreet and would agree to do pro bono work then this would work out just fine. Besides, there would be a delicious irony for the Empire’s own to hunt down the Empire’s reconing.

“What?”

“ORDER UP!” The little bell dinged behind him. Obi Wan grabbed the heaping plate and subsequent refill of caf and plopped it in front of the ISB agent as fast as he could manage. 

“Would you look for my nephew?” Banaka stared blankly and pulled the plate closer to her. 

“I thought you’d never get around to asking. Course, I thought you’d hate me forever.”

“I can pay you.” Obi Wan said, wondering just what sort of bribe the Rebellion would be willing to pay to a single ISB agent. 

“Ha, with what money? Just keep the caf coming.” Banaka picked up her bag and pulled out datapad.   
“Alright, give me what relevant information you can think of and then we’ll get on to a face sketch.” 

It would be supremely risky to ask for the woman’s help. Stupid even but if anyone could find Luke in this mess of a galaxy it would be Banaka. 

“I can’t promise anything.” She said once she’d gathered the relevant information and packed it all away. “But I’ll keep an eye out for him and don’t worry. I’ll keep it on the down low so whatever trouble you’re in doesn’t come sniffing around for you.” 

“Thank you.” Obi Wan said and erased any feeling of guilt he would have had over misleading the woman. She left him with the dirty dishes of her breakfast and vanished back onto the street. 

“Are you sure it was wise to ask an ISB agent?” Dex said, lumbering in from the kitchen to watch the Jedi slump against the register. “She’s smart, its only luck she hasn’t identified you.”

“Luck and a dye job and fake teeth and a change of clothes. Force, I haven’t felt his disgusting since….” His voice trailed off and he shrugged a bit. “Dex, the agent will help us and if she does manage to make unpleasant connections then we will do what we used to.”

“Nasty way to go.” Dex said and patted his shoulder. “Keep up the good work, you’re bringing in all sorts.”

“She was here for your good, not me.” Obi Wan said and distracted himself with counting the cash on hand. “What is does find Luke?”

“Don’t worry about it, buddy. She finds him she finds him and you get the blond back and then we take care of the agent.” 

#$#$#

Leia hadn’t really felt sick at all until the first time she’d fainted in the middle of her dancing lessons. She hadn’t even felt weary until the barrage of tests had kept coming back negative. Weeks of tests and disruption to her schedule finally revealed what was wrong with her. 

It was called the Broken Heart Virus. A dramatic name that fit it pretty well all things considered. And it wasn’t something a lot of people knew much about. Apparently it was rare enough that there had only been one case in the last eight decades. Finding out that Lady Jifus Vader had been one of the only surviving doctors to have worked with the last patient had made her feel almost as ill as she was supposed to be feeling. 

“Something on your mind, Princess?” Leia had only been with the woman a single morning. A morning which her father had not left the war once. Bail Organa hovered uneasily beside her bed as the woman pressed her fingers against her wrists pulse point. 

“You’re different than I expected.” She said, taking care not to notice how pinched his father’s expression became. 

“Doctors usually are.” The easy smile was almost as pinched as her father’s but for different reasons. “We don’t spit needles and breath noxious fumes. I had a kid a few months ago break down into tears because he thought I was going to cut his foot off.” Leia smiled. 

“I’m used to doctors at this point.” Leia said, “But thank you.” 

“No problem.” Lady Vader sighed a bit and scribbled something new down her datapad. “Senator, I need to speak with you in my office.” Leia watched her father stiffen and nod. “Here,” the princess accepted a small sucker. “For your patience. We’ll be back before you know it. Alright?”

“I have classwork I need to study.” Leia said, “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.” 

“No worries.” Only when she had pulled Senator Organa into her cramped and cluttered office did any attempt at a smile fade. “Well, the good news is is that she’s in the very early stages.” 

“How long does she have, Doctor?” Bail’s dark eyes bored into hers. Jifus adverted her gaze, fiddling with her stylus and sighed.

“It’s not good. A year, at most. Eight months at least.” Bail Organa gasped and nearly fell over. As it was he dropped into one of the only chairs in the room. A dozen files went flopping to the floor. 

“Oh, force!” 

“Senator, telling her is your choice but.”

“Do you think you can find something? A cure? Anything? Is there anything to help her?”

“At the moment no, None of my data survived the war and neither did my associates.”

“You survived the war, Doctor.” Organa straightened and stared her down with such a glare the she reflexively blanched. “You did, you know how to help her and if you don’t then you at least know where to start.”

“I guess. I mean, I think I do.” Jifus shrugged helplessly. “This is a very peculiar case, Senator. I won’t promise anything then I will try my absolute hardest to help the Princess.” 

“Do or do not there is no try.” The woman jerked backward as if he’d smacked her and stared weirdly at him. 

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear that.” She said and stuffed her hands into her lab coat pockets. “The best thing for you to do right now it to spend time with Leia. I can have a place set up for you in her ward if you’re both willing.”

“I’ll have to tell my wife.” Bail pressed his hands to his head. “Today and..she needs to know” 

“Of course.” Doctor Jifus felt as if the conversation had spiraled out of her control and only nodded. “I’m not going to run any more definitive tests on Leia right now. We have her biopsy and blood work. It’s possible that we’ll have to come back for some more. It would be wisest to transfer her to the permanent living section of the hospital. There she’d probably be more comfortable.” 

“That sounds wise.” Jifus had seen the haunted look of desperation in the eyes of too many people to not recognize it now. She knew that every person reacted different when face with a situation like this and it was usually her policy to draw back and keep her distance until she figured out which way they went. “I.” He struggled visibly. “I am, going to comm my wife.”

“The comm unit is.”

“I know.” Organa took a deep breath and nodded, “I know where it is. Thank you doctor.” He left in a hurry and Jifus rubbed her head. 

“Hey. Doctor Lady! The patient in bed number six that we admitted last night needs your attention.” Her intern said cheerfully. Jifus rolled her eyes.

“I’m a surgeon! Damnit! Why are you asking me to advise on these cases?”

“Because he’s human and old and grumpy and doesn’t want any of the alien staff working on him.” 

“Too damn bad, send in Dr. Zenon and if he can’t handle having a Kel-dor look him over then transfer him out.” Jifus bent over to pick up her fallen files.

“Sure thing, Doc!” The interns voice faded.

“Damned ungrateful, xenophobic pieces of shit.” She swore, “twenty years I’ve been doing this and every years there’s always on little prick that can’t handle seeing anyone but humans in positions of authority.” Jifus snarled and swore to herself as she moved files around and eventually got around to picking up the abandoned wrappers and garbage that were littered about. 

#$#$#$

Vader had a dizzying array of ships. Each one more interesting and exciting than the last. Luke, who had never actually been on the pilot track of the academy, still loved ships. Given the opportunity he would have gotten around to buying his own eventually. Ships were the best part of the museum raids Aphra took him on. They were the best part of the cons and heists and no matter what Doora said, he was a good pilot.

“You seem properly fascinated.” The man had stayed a few paces behind him as Luke scurried from one end of the hanger to the next. Sometimes he’d pick a ship to stare at obsessively for a while before bounding off to another. “And easily entertained.” 

“These ships are hundreds of years old!” Luke said. “I’ve only ever seen them in textbooks! They’re amazing and you have them all in here!” 

“You are a keen pilot then?” 

“I wish I was.” Luke waved off the words with a shrug. “They wouldn’t put me on the piloting program no matter how much I asked. I loved flying though! It’s the best part about everything! When you can take a ship from a mudhole in the middle of nowhere to the upper city of a planet like this. Hyperspace, the starlines of the universe right there outside the window.” Luke grinned widely and pressed his hands to the clean lines of the Mandalorian Starfighter. “Isn’t that what you love about flying. OH! Can you teach me to fly?”

“No.”

“Why not?” Vader felt something like regret when Luke’s eyes shone with dashed hopes. “You’re the best Starfighter pilot in the galaxy! Everyone says so. You can teach me the basics right? It doesn’t have to be official piloting stuff and I won’t take any speeders out of a joyride but I need to learn how to fly.”

“Need?” Vader crossed his arms even as he tasted the truth to Luke’s words. His voice was high with youthful fervor and desperation. “I am certain you need to eat and sleep but you do not need to fly.” 

“Scandal!” Luke pressed his hands to his chest but didn’t stop his attack. “Why not? Do you think can’t teach well? That’s okay, I’ve had bad teachers before. I can learn from anyone.” 

“I am an excellent teacher.” Vader retorted, affronted. “I can teach you how to fly.”

“YES!”

“I said I could not that I would.”

“Oh come on! Don’t nit pick. Teach me how to fly!” Luke bounced across the room until he was fair running circles around the sith. “Come on, what could be more fun?” 

“I have no interest in fun.” Vader lied, “Come.” Luke followed him to a waiting shuttle that was obviously only used for formal occasions. He took his usual seat in the pilots chair and indicated for Luke to take the co-pilots. Usually that seat was occupied by which ever terrified aide had pulled the short straw for the evening. Luke was vibrating with excitement again, eyes shining as he took in the ship’s control board. “The first part of pilot is here.” Vader gestured to the controls. “You must learn these before you learn anything else.” 

Luke nodded and leaned forward to listen so he wouldn’t miss anything.


	17. Message Sent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Gohan looks for Gentleman. Gentleman looks for Gohan. Luke figures out that being parented is not what they show in the holo-films. Jifus is highly entertained by her son.

Gohan moved in and out of the crowds of the undercity of Corellia’s capital. Aliens and humans of all ages and sizes shoved past in their mindless walk elsewhere. She took the moment to snatch of few credits out of the pockets of some particularly irritating looking humans before ducking into the last corner at the end of the street. 

“You’re late.” 

“You’re early.” She grinned and pulled down her hood enough to glare the human male into submission. He was a young sort with a slanted accent and fine features and hooded eyes. “It’d rude to be early to a clandestine meeting packing what?” She leaned back and surveyed the Rebellion issued clothes, “Three blasters?”

“A little caution is useful,” He retorted, “What do you have for me?”

“Ah, ah, now so fast, human scum. Where’s my payment?” In the shadows of the starscapers and surrounded by hundreds of scents of food and people she could see the flare of anger in his dark eyes and small stench of annoyance. 

“Here.” He tossed a truly pathetic bag of credits at her. Gohan didn’t need the tiny bribe the Rebellion gave her every time she decided to give them some outdated information. She found it amusing and kind of hilarious they thought this tiny stack of credits would buy anything on the Outer Rim. Of course, Karrde was beyond their price range and she did have a weakness for the underdogs. 

“First, Taa is gone. Out of the picture, any sort of dealings you boss want with him are useless. They’ll be lucky if they find his body. Second, steer clear of the Hutt Territories. Jabba’s dead and his clan’s flailing so the power games are nasty.” 

“You’re giving me information we already know.” The human fingered his blaster with a distinct flare of longing. “Tell me about the crew and Gentleman.” 

“Gentleman’s a kriffing ghost. I lost his trail on Nar Shadda. It ends there anything else I found is only three months old. The guy popped in and out of existence for whatever reason. His agents shouldn’t exist and they don’t. Can’t find them anywhere either.”

“What about the twi’lek?”

“Gone too. Someone’s taking power on the outer rim. A ghost maybe, human I think.” Gohan growled her genuine frustration. “There’s money getting flung around and things happening but I can’t tell what it means.”

“What sort of things?”

“Spicers disappearing, spice mines collapsing. Smugglers getting shuffled around or shot down. It’s almost like…someone’s cleaning up the outer rim. Mire the Hutt lost an entire shipment of twi’lek slaves too. It’s outside your Rebellion and I’m putting money on this Gentleman guy but wherever he is a kriffing mystery. 

“Doctors.” The rebel blurted, “Doctors.”

“What?” Gohan stopped sliding the credit bag around her finger enough to stare at the human. 

“Slave transmitters need doctors to remove them, surgeons.”

“Look, human. This isn’t just one person. I’ve got flavors at least a dozen different trouble makers wrapped up in this. Naboo, there’s a man on Tatooine and he can’t be Gentleman because he’s too damn small, and crazy enough I think Mobile Doctors are in one whatever this is. Look, human. Something’s change on the outer rim. Something big. It ain’t the Empire.” 

“Well yank on the threads and see who fall off the puppet stand.” The human snorted. “Find something concrete before your come babbling rumors at me.” Rumors was almost the reason she was here. Rumors were what Kitster wanted.

“Well, you remember that card game. I found a lead on Gohan,” Gohan said, “They might be interested in a meeting with the Rebellion.”

“What can you tell me about him?”

“Not much,” Gohan lied, “agents dragged me out of my room to meet with ‘em. Didn’t get much besides they’re young and human.” 

“What about Aphra.” 

“A rouge archeologist. Don’t mess with her, she’s got some assassin droids that are just disturbing. Mess with her and there won’t be much left of you. Says she works for Gohan on a contractual basis. Not worth getting jolted with a few thousand bolts because the hell droid didn’t like your face.” Gohan rubbed her back and cursed the wretched homicidal astromech. “That’s all I got. Gohan said he’ll tell me to call you when he wants a meeting, until then he said stay out his business.” 

“His business?” Part of the reason Gohan even bothered with the Rebel was because he sometime had decent insights and sometimes he didn’t. Plus, he wasn’t bad looking as humans went. 

“His business.” She nodded, “He’s con-man, criminal. A high flying scum bag, he drops criminals for a laugh and if he gets mad enough he’ll drop the rebellion too.” 

“Do you think he can drop the rebellion?” The rebel wondered and Gohan carefully considered one of the many plans to actually doom the Rebel Alliance. She nodded. “Right, what else do you have?”

“Lord and Lady Vader adopted a son.” She offered. Cassian Andor glowered. That bit of news had been all over the HoloNet the last week since it had broken. “Leia Organa is dying from a disease and her attending doctor is Lady Vader. Circumstances are suspect but I’d put money on it being an assassination.”

“Alright,” Cassian nodded to her. “Go.” Gohan snorted but rejoined the teeming crowd outside in the market. She whistled cheerfully and made her way back to the passenger liner set to take off three hours from now. 

#$#$3

It turned out tracking down worn down old parts to moisture vaporators was a lot harder and a lot easier than he’d thought initially. First, the serial numbers were registered to a certain company and then the company had the shipment history brought up. That told him the vaporators were sent off-world but this particular bunch had been stolen mid-flight by pirates. After a few days trying to crack a cold case over fifty years old that no one had bothered to investigate in the first place Kallus finally found a new avenue of questioning. 

“Where?” He rubbed his forehead, glowering at the screen in front of him. After almost two days of playing comm-tag with the distribution managers he had finally gotten something sentient. “Were these parts headed for?” 

“Uh…” There was a bored voice on the other end and Kallus despised the fact that he was in a manufactured nightmare. “These were headed for Tatooine. There was, like, on actual licensed dealer on the planet. Hell, it’s possible they ended up there to end with. Stars know that Jabba controlled more people out there than anything else. 

“Really?” 

“That’s all I got for ya, agent.” The presumably human voice answered, “You got anything else you need?” 

“No.” Kallus dropped the call a second later to avoid having to waste another second on the comm line. 

“Trouble with the comms?” 

“I’m sure they made getting a hold of someone sentient as difficult as possible.” Kallus muttered into the desk and finally looked at Tove. “What can I do for you, Agent Tove?” 

“Tatooine?”

“That tells me very little.”

“False, it give me an idea for an experiment. Go down to the junk dealing levels. Get a few parts for vaporators, none of them could have ever been to Tatooine. I’ll get some brand new ones, mix them in with his stuff and see what he keep or discards.”

“How is he supposed to know what was on Tatooine or not?”

“He’s not.” Tove told him, “He’s not a magic kid. This could identify if he’s used to dealing with crap parts in the past or if he can even work with new things.” 

“How are we supposed to see how that works?” Kallus frowned. 

“Easy.” She shrugged a thin shoulder. “We ask Lord Vader.” 

#$#$#

Vader wondered if Agent Tove was secretly Force sensitive. Sometimes her mind made just fantastic leaps of intuition and deduction it impressed even him. “Luke.”

“Uh huh?” Luke was touching every one of the controls on the ship and naming their functions under his breath. It was impressive how easily he had taken to flying and learning about ships. His education on them must have been informal and spotty at best. 

“Have you given much thought to your school?” Luke finally looked at him. His short form was overwhelmed by the size of the pilots chair but he seemed comfortable. 

“I only just looked at the pamphlets. I didn’t really read them.” 

“Perhaps you ought to give them more thought.” He urged and closed down his datapad and Tove’s proposal disappeared.

“I don’t want to think about it.” Luke said. “I’ve got four weeks and we’ve only been sitting here for a couple of hours. Do we have to go?” 

“Four weeks is nothing considering you must first fill out application forms, study for an entrance exam, be fitted for school uniforms, assigned classes, meetings with school advisers.”

“I’m going to school! It doesn’t need to be that complicated!”

“Son, there are few schools that will accepte you simply for applying.” 

“I don’t.” Luke blanched, “I don’t know a lot. Stormtrooper academies don’t…” Luke took a deep breath. “What kind of school do I…?” Flying was forgotten as he faced another awful reality of no longer being a free-floating thief. 

“Calm yourself, son.” Vader stood and gestured for Luke to follow him. “I will help you.” When they were returned to his office, the pamphlets spread over the desk and Luke looking blankly at each one; Vader gave his input. 

“This one,” it was the one with the aliens on it, not only humans. “Is perhaps the best choice if the many. It has a long history of producing some of the finest minds the Core has seen.”

“They have a Twi’lek principal.”

“This school is funded privately with the intention that if they are too spend that much money for a school then they must have only the best. This includes having only the best teachers and staff, many of whom are non-human.”

“So even though the rich people hate them…?”

“Do you know of Grand Moff Tarkin?” Luke made a face and nodded. “His grandchildren of age attend this school.” Though that was probably only because his daughter was a scientist. People in the sciences were either xenophobic to the nth degree or had no care of species. His wife, for example, was one such person. “Because of this the entrance exam is notoriously difficult.” 

“Oh.” 

“Do you have any interests in future careers?” Vader asked and almost found humor at how lost Luke looked. Clearly this had never been brought up. 

“I like fixing things.” Luke said and he pulled out a familiar bundle of wire and parts. “Um…I want to fly.” Luke fiddled with the pieces and Vader wondered at the merit of Tove’s most recent idea. 

“Their science program is second to none.” Vader had reviewed the statistics of all the schools. He had only given Luke information packets for ones he would allow the boy to attend. 

“They give out a lot in scholarships. Do you think I could win one of those? That way it’ll be so much cheaper.”

“You do not need to concern yourself with the scholarship, Luke.” Vader reminded him. “Only with the entrance exam.” 

“I…I wouldn’t even know where to start. I don’t want to go the others because they’re all full of the…” The word propaganda floated between them and Vader smiled beneath his mask. 

“Agreed. I will have my aide procure the necessary study materials for the exam as well as the application. Your records with the academies will be added as well.”

“Alright.” Luke still looked unbalanced as he traced the stern lettering of the school’s letter head. “This seems like a lot.” 

“Indeed.” The Sith surveyed the short blond and marveled at how youthful he seemed at time. “Furthermore, you have a lesson with Niles this afternoon.” 

“Ew.”

“Etiquette at dinner parties.”

“I thought you guys didn’t go to those.” Luke’s force signature was heavy with his unwilling sulkiness. “They’re a waste of time.”

“As you have never been to one then these are necessary skills.” Vader did not tell Luke of the one and only time Tarkin had invited them to a dinner party. It had been an unmitigated disaster that had only entertained his grandchildren and left the adults with bitter loathing of each other. Vader counted the fact that he now had less interaction with Tarkin now as a success. 

“Ugh.” 

“It does not happen often.” He promised.

“I should have read the Terms and Conditions before I agreed to this ‘son’ thing.” Luke said and slumped against the uncomfortable chair with a groan. “I didn’t realize being normal was so hard.”

Vader had never known normal, he could say little on the subject. “Your mother enjoys dancing.” 

“She does?” Luke perked up.

“Yes.” Vader produced a chip and plugged it into his padd and brought up one of the images. Jifus was wearing something that resembled a uniform. Tan pants taken from the Separatists, a plain beige shirt with no marking and a limp jacket of Republic cut. Her rank bars had been mockingly pinned to the wrong pocket and here cap was nowhere to be seen. In the picture, she was laughing, head thrown back while her arms were wrapped around an unfamiliar man in the embrace of a ‘Mon Cal Waltz’. Unlike a holo no one moved but there was plenty of potential in the image anyway. Jifus and the man were in a spin, the people around them out of sync and in different motions. Dim lights flared in the distance and he could just make out the words O.R. painted onto the side of a building. 

Luke took the padd, awed. “She’s looks so…alive.”

“Dancing is a popular past-time on Axxila.”

“Do you dance?” 

“Only when I have to.” 

“Do you ever dance with…Mom?” Vader blinked and considered the question. 

“Once.”

He looked back at the picture and wondered at his mother’s history. “She looks happy. You should go dancing more. I think she’d like that.”

“Son.”

“No really! Don’t married people have to do that thing where they go on dates to make other people jealous. I saw it in a holo once.”

“No one is jealous of your mother, Luke.”

“Still, she likes dancing. You should go dancing.” 

“It is undignified to be seen doing such for entertainment.” 

“That’s your excuse?” Vader now understood why people were always laughing around teenagers. They were hilarious, intentionally or not. Luke’s incredulous horror on behalf of his mother was amusing.

“Luke.” He shook an admonishing finger at the boy which had terrified entire fleets of pilots into obedience. Luke only rolled his eyes. 

“Do you guys do anything interesting together?”

“Your lesson with Niles is in the ball room. He will be expecting you.” Luke gave him a flat stare but walked from the room with his head held dramatically high. As if he was suffering a terrible fate with great dignity. At the last moment, he whipped around and hissed, “Go on a date.” 

“OUT!” Vader thundered with no fire and Luke vanished from the doorway. He sighed as Luke’s laugh echoed back toward him. 

#$#$#

“Did your day go well?” Luke watched his mother lift her head from the table and blink blearily at him. 

“Went like a day,” she answered, grasping for the tea Deno set by her head. “How was yours? You spent some time with your father.” 

“We spent a couple of hours on the ships. He’s teaching me how to fly. Then about schools and apparently, I’m getting study books for those. Then I hate this dancing lesson with Niles.” 

“He dances very well.” Niles reported as he set a bowl of soup in front of Luke, “When he focuses.” 

“Hmmm, dancing’s a great idea. You’ll be better for knowing how.” Jifus buried her head in her arms and yawned. “Anything else?”

“School seems interesting. I’m looking into getting into the Academy of Science and Innovation.”

“Hmmmm.” 

“Uh…I had steak for lunch.” 

“Niles, you spoiln’ the boy?”

“Yes, milady.”

“Hmmm.”

“Uh…you got back.” 

“Yep.” She blinked tired gray eyes at him and yawned again. “I was gone before either of you were up. If you have any questions on your science stuff in your study books I can help. Your father’s a mathematician, he can help you there.”

“He’s a mathematician?” Luke leaned back, impressed and bypassed his bowl to set his new datapad on his mother’s head. 

“It’s not something he advertises.” She raised an eyebrow when Luke took her datapad and set it on top of his. “Are you stacking datapads on my head?”

“Yep.” 

“Okay, you’re strange.” She grinned and sat up, dislodging the pads. “Where is Kit now?”

“You will not address me as such.” Vader ordered, sweeping into the kitchen where the two insisted on eating despite every convention to the opposite. 

“Hmmmm. What did you do today?”

“I have discovered the true depths of our son’s insolence.” 

“HA!” Luke took a dainty sip of soup. Jifus huffed in tired amusement. 

“And that he is a keen pilot.”

“So I gathered. We’ll have to make sure he makes an honorable career choice.”

“A TIE pilot.” Vader said the instant Jifus added. 

“A doctor.” Luke ducked his head when gray eyes zeroed in on the blank mask. “Hmm, I hope I heard you incorrectly.” 

“That depends,” Vader said, “If you have applied your favorite skill of selective hearing or not?”

“Do I get a choice?” Luke wondered dryly, “Or am I going to everything from my clothes to my future picked out?”

“Well.”

“Hey! 

“On that note you do need a haircut.” 

“Perhaps a much stronger soap. “

“A long shower.”

“New.”

“I’m leaving!” Luke yelped and grabbed his bowl and was out of the room before either adult could protest. When they followed him they found him in the living room. His soup balanced on his knees and was perusing his datapad. 

“Are we watching a holo?” Jifus waggled the remote at her husband. “I know that “Love against Intelligence is on right now.”

“Isn’t that the trashy show where all the Intelligence officers are all pretty and on useful when the plot calls for it?” Luke asked as the holo powered up and an infomercial was playing. 

“Yep!” She claimed the other end of the couch and waved at her husband. “Kit, watch with us.” 

“I have work.” He said and stiffly whirled around and left. 

“Eh, probably something classified. Now, I want to see if that stupid officer gets his face punched in or his ribs.” 

“Mom!”

“I have to unwind somehow! Mindless holo does the trick.” Luke blanched as the holo equivalent of Darth Vader came storming onto the screen. He knew it had to be the portrayal of his father because the man was the tallest, broadest, and meanest man on the show. He scared every other character and was ‘ruthless’ to the nth degree. “Last season finale was when he got married.” Jifus winked at him. “To a pretty little nurse who laughed way too loud.” 

“Mom!” 

The fake Vader stormed around the two main protagonists and took a few minutes to shout at them. “Ten credits he adopts a kid out of the blue in the next one.” 

“MOM!” Jifus cackled gleefully.

“Turn that drivel off!” They heard Vader order from the hallway and Jifus turned up the volume. His steps vanished into the distance and Deno made his appearance. 

“What’s happening?”

“Aja and Tomi are making bantha eyes at each other.” Jifus relayed, “Commander De’va is yelling at them about misfiled paperwork.”

“Any new missions?” 

“Not yet, the episode just started. Sit down. But I think that they’re going to head to Corellia in this one.” 

Luke stared at the woman, “You watch a holo show that’s loosely based on you and…Father.” He managed to form the word. “And his intel officers. Why?”

“It is hilarious and I’m still gunning for the day when I can get your father to watch an episode. He’ll love his character.”

Luke watched Commander De’va drain an entire mug of caf and look like he was about to vibrate right off the screen. “What?”

“Shhh, just watch. Main-tragic-hero-man is going to give all of his agents a mission.”

“So what’s the point?” 

“Well, this guys is the handler for a group of intel officers. They go on the mission and he nitpicks. Obviously the officers are women with poorly fitted uniforms and the run around and get beat up and captured a lot. They all listen to De’va when he’s on screen and sometimes you get to see his wife.” Jifus winked, “Me.”

“But why?”

“It’s the only interesting show on right now.”

“It’s terrible!”

“I know!”

“I’ve been robbed.” There was a dimly echoing silence in the living room and on the screen as every person sucked in a deep breath. 

“Oh no.” Luke clapped hand over his eyes.

“Oh yes!” Jifus laughed. 

“An antique was taken from my house.” Commander De’va said, “We will be investigating this crime in particular.” Luke watched with a horrified fascination as the clunky dialogue built a story too fantastical to be false. How, in the course of a week, did Gohan manage this? He knew she controlled different media platforms via blackmail but this was a new low for her. Luke would have to pay her back in kind. He buried his face in a pillow and seethed.

“So let me get this straight.” Luke hated Gohan. He was going to punch her in the face and then set something on fire. Ohhh, he was going to booby trap her bed. “They head off to capture the thief only to figure out that the thief was some kid who just needed money and food.” 

“Yep.” Luke felt his face and neck burning. 

“And they adopted him?”

“Yep!” He forced down his embarrassment and then looked up from the pillow, “I was a Stormtrooper cadet. I guess that’s not as exciting as pretending I was a thief in another life.”

“I guess.” Luke glowered at the doctor’s too-wide grin that showed all her teeth. “Stop it. It’s not funny.” 

“It is hilarious.”

“How cute.” Deno cooed, “Look.” Their attention refocused on the screen to see the fake Vader wrap his stupidly ornate cloak around the fake Luke’s shoulder and hoist him into his arms. It was cute, Luke admitted to himself. Even if it was clearly Gohan messing with him. This was what happened when morally ambiguous thieves had a mean streak of humor a light year wide and access to HoloNet. 

Jifus laughed and flipped the holo off as the ending credits rolled. “We are never showing that to your father.” 

In the privacy of his office Vader stemmed his laughter and humor. He had to admire this ‘Gohan’ thief and criminal. They clearly had no shortage of cunning audacity to flaunt such control over a HoloNet show producer. He hoped whatever message Luke was meant to get had been received because now he had a lead.


	18. Uncle Unknown

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Palpatine is a jerk.

Jifus was many things. A surgeon, a doctor, an ex-alcoholic, a speeder-demon, a criminal, a black marketeer and occasionally a smuggler. Adding mother to the list had never been on her list of priorities and neither had been adding wife to it. Her whole identify had always been summed up in a single word, though. 'Doctor' and it felt like it still was. 

There were no reliable instruction manuals and how to handle what she was feeling. As she watched Luke climb the stairs to his own room she gave a waved when he turned around at the very top and smiled down at her. 

"Night." He said and vanished from view. As soon as he was out of sight Jifus made for the office. 

"I've just had a terrible thought." She said, storming into the room and waving her arms about. "Lots of terrible thoughts actually. Loads of terrible thoughts. Mostly just one really bad one. A really bad one." Jifus paused before the painting she had gifted to her husband. It gave her a measure of peace when she sucked in a deep breath and let it out. "I just had the most awful feeling that something's going to happen to Luke." 

"Many things could happen." She heard Vader stand. "The future is always in motion." 

"I'm not a Jedi but I've got a bad feeling about this. I..." She wrung her hands together. "Luke is so young and small. Anything could happen. I just get this feeling. A really bad feeling." 

"Have you ever experienced such a pro monition before?" 

"I think I'm just getting new parent jitters. They said its normal in the book."

"Book?" 

"I bought a book on how to take care of a newly adopted kid. Just, some stuff I thought I could use considering I'm the only one of the two of us that hasn't raised kid already. Shit!" She stuff her hands into her pocket and reached to the hand that landed on her shoulder. "I'm not going to lie. Feeling super out of my depth right now." 

"You are capable in all things, my wife. I have full confidence." Vader made a mental note to have Luke watched closely. It would never do to discount the suspicions of a doctor. "How went your work today. I was informed of your patient and particular case."

"Still no ideas about what to do. Still lost. She's still sick but we've paced the infection. It's going much slower than on the clone trooper. Tomorrows a new day to try." Miserably she rubbed at her forehead. "How did the day with Luke go?"

"As well as he reported. I have scheduled for him to take the entrance exam at Academy of Science and Innovation."

"Oh, a good school I've heard."

"An excellent school." 

"Oh. I should probably warn you that I haven't really told my parents about us adopting. We have to call them." Vader felt a headache and sighed.

"Now?" 

"If you don't mind." 

"I would much prefer if you made this call without me." Vader said honestly. 

"If you want but where will you work?" She turned from the painting to crane her neck to see her husband tilt his head to the side. 

"The library is still free." 

"Gag, I can't believe I married rich enough for me to hear that phrase. Go." She patted the hand on her should a few times before moving toward the enormous holo station that had been installed to enable Vader's access to his admirals and agents across the galaxy. "Before I feel the urge to drape myself in diamonds and prance around like a socialite." 

"One of the most ruthless women I have met is a socialite." Vader pointed out, but went anyway. "I will check on Luke." 

"You don't need to tuck him in again." Jifus called after him. "He's thirteen! Not a toddler!" Balancing his datapads he managed to avoid waving dismissively. She was right, of course, he did not need to make sure Luke was in bed. So he went to the library, happy enough to have avoided the uncomfortable conversation with his in-laws. 

When Jifus had contacted her mother through a number of different interns and security checks she waved and cut off anything the older woman might have said. "I've adopted a thirteen year old. His name is Luke, he's very cute and sassy and cute. You're going to like him." 

High Lord Protector Piett blinked a few times and then shook her head. "You did what?" 

"Kit and I have adopted a thirteen year old." Jifus said again. Her mother's one good eye squinted. 

"Kit?"

"Vader."

"Does he know what it?"

"Nope, not in the slightest. Hopefully when he finds out what it means he won't mind so much."

"He minds now?" 

"Not as much as he likes to say he does." Jifus eyed her mother jealously when the woman produced a cigar and lit it with an easy flick of her lighter. "Mother." 

"So I have a grandson?" She blew a ring a smoke toward the ceiling. "What is he like?"

"Small and sarcastic. A real cutie, blond hair and big blue eyes and if your going to smoke can't you at least share?"

"No." Gozus Piett blew another ring. "How well-behaved is he?" 

"We just got him so he's pretty well behaved and why are you asking me these questions. You already knew what we did. It's been all over the holoNet. 

"I did but I wanted to hear it from you." Gozus said. "I assumed you've been following your father's example in all thing family related and waiting until the last minute to tell us any news or never getting around to telling us ever. I wouldn't be surprised."

"Where is dad anyway?" 

"At his clinic. He just got a new shipment of interns to teach." 

"Excellent. Good for him. You'll tell him, right?" 

"Yes. I'm taking a week off to relax. Things have been quiet out here for the better part of a year." Gozus said, sounding bitter but pleased too. "Might come visit." 

"I assume Firmus is taking over the fleet while your away?" Jifus leaned onto the holo table, watching the projection of her mother smother her laughter and duck her head. 

"No, they're sending everything to me still. No one knows the meaning of vacation on Axxila. Firmus seems happier though. I think I almost got him to laugh the other day. Seems like some color is coming back to him. Hmm, make sure you don't lose yours, Jifus. I know being around such a lifeless environment can do that to someone."

"I'm not in a lifeless environment, mother but thanks for the concern." 

"Is there a particular reason that my son-in-law did not want to be present for this conversation? If he suffers under the delusion that I am going to throw a screaming hissy fit and demand all sort of personal information the kindly disabuse him of this nothing. He is my son, not the enemy."

"You know, according to the holo films you ought to consider him the enemy."

"I do not give a damn about the holo flicks!" Gozus smacked a hand across the table. "You made the choice and I will respect it. I am insulted he would begin to think of me as some wretched harpy based solely on stereotype. Make sure he does not continue to think this! Honestly!" 

"Does that mean you'll give us our wedding present? We've adopted a kid so that means we're probably going to be making it for a while."

"You have a child, congratulations. So do so many other people who eventually split. Your grandparents waited until we were married ten years before giving us our wedding present. Don't rush me." 

"Fine, fine. Be stingy and bitter all you like, Mother. Clearly you have no faith in me." 

"You I have total faith in. You are too much like your father for me not too but I do not trust those around you." Gozus Piett tapped a few beats out on the tabletop. "When will I meet the grandson?" 

"I'm not sure. Whenever we have time I suppose."

"Don't be ridiculous. I want to meet the boy before we put you in the ground for caf overdose. Meeting family for the first time at a funeral is bad manners." 

"True, true but there's another thing. I might need Dad's help on a new case I just got this morning. Very important, very hush hush so when you tell him just tell him I need him on stand by. Just in case." 

"I'll let him know." 

"Also, Kit hasn't given me a wedding present and I'm not so sure." 

"Communication is key, Jifus." Gozus said. "You won't be sure of anything he thinks at this point unless you ask him. It seems he knows very little of our culture so what you have to do is talk to him. He won't know anything unless you do."

"Bah. I'm happier pretending." 

"Everyone usually is but you've made a commitment to each other which means you're going to have to talk."

"I know that much. I'm not an idiot."

"You certainly are not but you are stubborn. If your Kit needs any ideas for wedding presents then send him my way. I have an excellent idea." 

"Mother, you gave dad rathtar blood and a head."

"Which he appreciated." Jifus glanced to the side, recalling how it had been retold by her father. 

"Of course he did, Mother." She held steady under the stern gaze of her mother. "I'd love to chat more but I am busy tomorrow so I'm going to go to bed." 

"Hmm uh. Good night then." Jifus gave a jaunty wave as she cut the connection. Carefully she straightened her lap coat and followed her favorite route to the library. It took her past an enormous set of windows that did their best to maximize the limited beauty of the Imperial Center. Hundreds and millions of lights glittered, joined by the blaring streaks of light that blurred the traffic lanes into single strings of red and white. From here she could see the senate dome and the eastern most wing of the Imperial Palace. Hundreds of millions of people lived on this planet, many of them physically beneath her feet. She imagined think this usually gave high ranking Imperials the sense of accomplishment or great power. Or maybe they were happy to have come so far by the labor of others. Their life styles built on pain and...Jifus had never built anything that hadn't been by her own two hands. 

She'd operated on everything from a rotting wooden table in a bombed out hut to the shining, gleaming medical wings of her most recent hospital. Using tools like old sewing needles and floss to the most high tech materials. She'd squelched her way through mud and filth to reach isolated patients, working days in a row to make a dent in the injured piled outside the operating room. Jifus worked for her accomplishments and her goals and. 

"I sensed your distress." Kit's hissing respirator came from just down the hall, still cast in the shadows of the darkened corridor. Just beyond the white light that streamed through the window. "Are you well?"

"Why haven't you given me a wedding present?" Jifus steadfastly did not look at him as he approached. Whirring servo motors and the mechanical tick that always accompanied him came to a half just two feet away. 

"Is there a need for it?"

"Yes." He remained silent. "On Axxila wedding's a scarce, not really a common thing. To have one is a big deal because we're half law-abiding citizens fighting to protect ourselves and the other half is criminals. Wedding presents are sort of sign that you think the thing is going to work. My parents didn't get theirs until their tenth wedding anniversary. But the couple is suppose to exchange one as something like a vote of confidence."

"I was unaware." 

"Now you know." She flipped a stylus between her fingers for several minutes. "I should get you a book, you know. About Axxilian culture. I had never really thought about before we got Luke. What I grew up with was just...natural and me that I never really thought about it much. Now. I have to have something to give Luke. He can't be...a Core World kid, there's nothing here for him so I think it'll be important for us to demonstrate my world's culture. It's really not much but what we do have we take a lot of pride in." Vader thought back on what he'd known as a child. The richness and breath of his mother's heritage, even as a slave. The language, the food, the meanings that stood behind everything they said or did. Everything he knew as a slave. 

Luke was a thief. Perhaps he was one who cared but Vader would not share such secrets with a thief. Even if the thief was his son. The boy could not be trusted. 

"It would be most wise."

"Mother says if you can't think of a suitable one then you should call her. She has some ideas."

"She took it well then?" 

"She was more insulted that you thought she would react badly to us not telling her. Besides, you think mother doesn't keep up with information in the Core? She knew already. Also, we may need to host my father to help with my patient." 

"If the need arises then we shall accommodate him." Vader hadn't actually spoken much to the elder Dr. Peitt. The man had been far more concerned with keeping the Lord Protector from strangling Tarkin and subsequently the rest of the Admirals usually stationed on the outer rim. Later in the party he'd been trying to entertain his bored daughter through her own wedding dinner. It would be interesting, he supposed, to keep the man here while he visited. 

"We also need to get Luke some new clothes." 

"Shall I summon the tailor?"

"Err, the one that does my dresses and gowns?"

"Yes."

"Waa! We're not hiring a tailor of that...skill to make our sons clothes! That's just a waste of money, we'll go pick something up. Well, a new wardrobe but we're not having a designer do our sons clothes. Did you see what he gave me for the wedding? We're not going back to him, he sucks. I'd suspect other peoples involvement if the rest of his works weren't also all so bad."

"As you wish." Vader tilted his head as the commlink wired into his helmet beeped a shrill tone that meant his master was calling. "I am being called, I will return in due time."

"See you in the morning." Jifus called after him as he left.

#$#

"Tell me, Governor Tarkin, have you had the pleasure of meeting with Lady Vader?" Emperor Palpatine lead the lean Grand Moff down the palace hall. Their conversation had shifted from the Death Star's eventual completion to silence and now to his apprentice. 

"I have, sire." The man. 

"And our your thoughts?" 

"Her intelligence is exceeded only by few, sire but I personally find her a great irritant."

"Lord Vader has something of an attachment to her as well, to allow her to adopt a child. He may become complacent in pleasing this shrieking harpy."

"Do you have a plan, sire?" Tarkin asked. Of course the emperor had a plan. The only reason he was sharing this with Tarkin at the moment was for the entertainment value. 

"Were you aware, Governor, that Lord Vader's niece, Ryoo Naberrie, has aspirations to become a doctor. Much like the current Lady Vader?"

"I did."

"Last week young Naberrie was arrested under suspicions of treason. Lord Vader does not know of course but I deduce he still has some lingering sentiment for his corpse bride." 

"What do you intend to do with Ms. Naberrie." Tarkin asked, following the Emperor into the gardens where the lights were almost all off. In the darkness he could see the sickly yellow glow of his eyes when he turned to him. 

"None of the Naberrie family would ever allow themselves to disgrace the revered name of Padme Amidala and her great work for Naboo. A reason the family has withdrawn from public eye completely. To all outward appearances the girl has only taken a short leave of absence and yet she is under investigation. If this investigation would become known it would smear the image and name of her beloved aunt." Tarkin marveled at the Emperor's cunning and waited with gleeful anticipation as the man extrapolated further. "The poor dear," the amused, mocking malice almost made the Grand Moff laughed too. "Has agreed to be placed in custody of a...suitable guardian until this investigation is finished. To protect her dear aunts name she has come to Imperial Center to be watched carefully so that any treasonous actions are certainly not hers." The last word was slanted, amused. Tarkin waited with almost breathless anticipation. "For the sake of resembling normalcy she had been enrolled in a university to complete her studies."

"Who has been chosen to be her guardian, sire?" Tarkin briefly considered himself before the truth of what the man was saying hit him. "Lord Vader?"

"Fitting, don't you think? An uncle caring for a niece in her time of need?" What is was was a firm reminder that Palpatine would not let Vader escape the painful past he'd created. A message the the Emperor still controlled the sith apprentice. They made a leisurely loop through the gardens and then back through the palace and into the throne room where Lord Vader was waiting, on bended knee. Tarkin was waved off into the viewing cubby holes. Vader know the man was there but gave no indication he cared. When the Emperor was seated did the man finally speak. 

"What thy bidding, my master?" If possible, Vader's posture became stiffer and stiffer as the Emperor relayed the fate of the man's niece and the potential disgrace of the former queen of Naboo. When the Emperor had reached his conclusion Vader did not speak for a long moment. "What is your wish, Master? My agents can procure proper surveillance for the girl in an apartment."

"Nothing more auspicious for the child, my young friend? Nothing more befitting someone so well connected? The only decent being at sniffing out traitors in whole Navy, second to your favored Agent Mol, is you, apprentice. Should she be passed into anyone else care her rebel efforts may be missed. I have faith only in your abilities, Lord Vader." Tarkin watched Vader struggle to come up with an answer. Whatever thoughts were in his head he couldn't guess but eventually Vader bowed his head. 

"As you wish, my master." Then, without waiting to be dismissed, Vader stood and stalked from the room. When Tarkin joined the Emperor next to his throne he watched the old man cackle gleefully. Apparently taking sport in Anakin Skywalker's misery was always a source of entertainment. 

#$#$

Vader stormed from the throne room and to his ship, shaking in unrestrained fury and hatred. He had just begun to swear profusely in the privacy of his mask when he jerked to a halt as he rounded the last corner to his ship. Already two ISB agents, Isard's loyal henchmen, were waiting there. The tiny, delicate figure of his niece in rumple scrubs and a small pile of luggage was between them. 

He jabbed a finger at the agents, reveling in their fear and terror. "Load the bags." He snarled and watched them seize them and scuttle into the ship with due haste. When he and Ryoo were in relative silence he spoke again. "I have been informed of your foolishness. Rest assured such stupidity will not be tolerated in my residence. The disgrace of your aunt will be furtherest from your mind should you decide to indulge in rebel idiocy."

"Lord Vader." Vader nearly wilted under the resemblance she had to her aunt. From her voice to the way she carried herself. "I have never taken part in any rebel activities. Rest assured this investigation will come up with nothing substantial." 

"This remains to be seen." He retorted and jerked a hand toward the landspeeder where the agents had just stowed the last of her bag. "Board the speeder, young one. I have no patience for further insolence." The 16 year old seethed with fury but did as he commanded. The ride back to his residence was unpleasant but silent. He messaged Niles and Deno ahead of time so when he landed in his hanger, the two were waiting with proper deference. When he dismounted, not bothering to wait for Ryoo he ordered the steward. "Assign Naberrie a room, assure she has been fed." Without another word he swept toward his wife's room. He found Jifus asleep, passed out in her usual manner of dead to the galaxy. "JIFUS!" He barked, reaching to seize her shoulder when her torso jolted just enough to show she was awake. She blearily peeled her eyes open and sat up miserably. 

"What? What's up?"

"Something has happened." Jifus jolted into true wakefulness, hands already reaching for her emergency bag. 

"What went wrong? Are you injured? What?" Vader paused and then took a seat beside her. Her gray eyes widened when he sat. 

"I am uninjured. Only the Emperor has seen fit to take an opportunity in mocking me." She blinked and he explained all that had transpired between himself and the Emperor and the purpose of Ryoo's stay. Then of Ryoo's education and future plans. When he finished she stared.

"A political prisoner against who? Who could...." Vader watched understanding reach her gray eyes. "She's not your."

"My niece," He told her, hating how he was forced to reveal this information. "Palpatine sees fit to mock me with attachments to my."

"What a prick!" She exclaimed with heartfelt annoyance. "What a sack of...okay. Do your job, obviously. We'll make sure she's...okay I guess. Best we can do." Jifus seemed to be reaching an unpleasant realization that has previously not occurred. That her life, as it was now, rose and fell according to Palpatine's amusement and whims. Vader watched something click into place in her mind and waited until she nodded again. Vader sat in the silence of her room, punctuated only by her soft breathing his hissing life-support. There was no measure of peace for him anywhere. He could sense Jifus planning something. Scheming in the night for herself and for others. 

Vader had never been more glad that his investigation into the ship thieves had never actually been deposited into the ISB archives. He had the feeling was going to need to be Gentleman for more reasons than investigation. Survival, namely. 

He too had the terrible feeling something was going to happen. With something like desperation he set a hand on hers, searching for a measure of comfort in the free-fall of turmoil he was experiencing. Jifus squeezed his hand with as much feeling; silently expressing her own fears at the development.


	19. Thoughts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Doora gets a job offer. Luke finally begins to think about things.

Ryoo was stony faced the entire time she was escorted from the hanger bay to her room. She refused any meal the human butler offered. Only allowing them to help carry her bags to whichever room that had been designated to her. Once that had been accomplished she firmly shut the door in his face. 

It wasn’t a bad room. Large and well-furnished but obviously more than a little plain. It was also two floors above the rest of the rooms where she presumed Lord Vader and his family lived. Probably a sign he wanted nothing more to do with her than absolutely needed. He hadn’t said anything to her except the usual threats if he should find any rebel interference in her life. It wasn’t late but it wasn’t really early and Ryoo, used to staying up long nights to study, couldn’t sleep. She paced the length of her room. From the door to the window and then from wall to wall. All her personal items had been left on Naboo, anything that would remind her of home was in her now abandoned student dorm in Theed. All she had were her books, supplies, and scrubs. 

She didn’t even have any of her other clothes. No soft fabrics or threads, just heavily starched imperial clothes. Alone and stuck as an unwilling member of Lord Vader’s household. What could she do? Would he allow her to finish school or would he decide the best way to keep her out of trouble was to lock her up. She moved around the room some more and then flopped face first onto the bed. 

What was going to happen to her? What was she going to do for the rest of her life? Were her parents in danger? Were her grandparents in danger? Why Vader? He was married, he’d just adopted a child. He was busy with obligations as the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Navy. Ryoo rolled over and over until she’d wrapped herself up in the blanket completely. She didn’t want to think about the morning. She didn’t want to think about anything right now. 

Ryoo ducked further into her blanket and wished a million wishes until she fell asleep. 

#$#$3

Doora bummed around Mandalore a few more days after her capture of the slave trader. She returned from the Base to pick up her tail again. True to Fett’s reputation he was following her within the day. She lead him from three different Guild offices in the undercity and then to a small colony planet where she landed in a dingy spaceport. She got herself a room and took a seat in one of the more private booths usually reserved for much more R-rated activities. Judging by the size of the backroom the barman was peddling flesh. 

Which was why she’d chosen this sinkhole in the first place. The man probably didn’t know he had a bounty on his head after he’d raided a consular ship. It was an Imperial bounty which meant that most of it went straight to taxes but Doora wasn’t doing this job for the money. 

“Did you choose a drink?” The tiered droid with squeaking insides leaned a bit more over the table. “I’d like to get a moment of recharge sometimes today.”

“Yes.” The voice modulator turned her squeaky voice heavy and smooth. “Some hot chocolate. I have an associate meeting me here in a few minutes. Please prepare him a Duchess Tyrant .” 

“Fine.” The droid grumbled, “Food?”

“No.”

“Great.” The droid rolled away and Doora drew the thick curtain closed and leaked back in her chair. She waited only a few minutes before the purple curtain waved and then split. Boba Fett was a tall fellow. His armor was well-worn and well cared for. Plenty a blaster burns and scuff marks to prove he was worthy of the armor. The rifle was held casually and his helmet’s ‘t’ shaped visor was aimed her direction. “Your drink will be here a minute. Take a seat.”

“You’re good.” Fett replied, taking a seat but not moving his fingers off the trigger of his gun. “You got my bounty a few days back.” 

“Clean-up work doesn’t seem to fit you, Fett. What brought you down to the Warehouse district.” He was silent and Doora watched his form for any sign of emotion. “Why do you follow me?”

“I saw your sniper work. I saw the whole thing.” Fett replied as the droid returned with the Duchess Tyrant. He stopped talking while the droid was there and then he removed his helmet. She stared and felt uneasiness pool in her stomach. Until this moment Doora had assumed that Fett had caught the tail end of her performance. She hadn’t considered he might know exactly what she looked like. What made the entire thing worse was that Fett was the exact copy of the men that Gohan had found in the base files. 

A clone.  
Boba Fett was a clone. 

“You’re good, smart and deadly.” He sipped his drink, fingers tips tapping out a beat on the table. “Nice gear too. A con-man.” Doora remained silent. “You’re either going to end up dead real soon or better than me.” 

“None of this explains why you’re following me.” Fett blinked lazily, dragon-like. 

“I’ll talk to you but you need to be as clear with me as I’m going to be. Take off the mask. Already know what you look like.” 

“You do.” Doora shifted just enough that her stun baton was now in her sleeve and then tossed her hood back and then pulled her mask off. “Sharp eyes.”

“Good helmet.” Fett grunted, taking a gulp. “How old are you anyway?”

“Not sure.” 

“Then how’d you end up bounty hunting?”

“A training gig really,” Doora leaned back and crossed her arms. “I fry bigger fish. What’s your interest?”

“What kind of fish?”

“Big ones. Ugly ones that eat all the little fish.” Her smile was toothy and wolfish. Fett felt his stomach tighten and then he nodded. 

“You have a boss?” 

“Yep?”

“Will he let you take a few days off?”

“Days?”

“Months.” Fett amended. “You’re a ten-year-old killing scum which I appreciate because I was a ten-year-old killing scum once.” 

“You’re like, 14.” Doora smirked, “Not much older than me.”

“I’m 26 thanks.” Fett’s strangely grizzled face made her shrug.

“Looking good for a clone. The other ones I met look like angry grandpas.” 

“I was ordered special.”

“So?”

“So I’d like to teach you what I know. I can appreciate a kid who knows how to handle a rifle like yours.” 

“I try.” Doora didn’t do modesty. She preened. “I’ll consider your offer.”

“And if you accept?” 

“You’ll get the call.” She said, pulling her mask back on and then pulling up her hood. With a wave to the clone she scuttled out of the booth and then out of the bar. From the back of the bar there was a muffled explosion and foul smelling gas began to pour out of the seams and windows. Knowing that Fett would grab the bounty and then the bill she left for her base with an easy step. 

#$#$#

Luke woke up with the ugly sensation of a nightmare clinging somewhere to the back of his mind. He didn't remember having it last night but he wasn't sure if that would hold out tonight. He rolled over and checked the chrono. For a moment he debated going back to sleep but something was bugging him. There was an itch in his chest, pulling him out of his room and then away from the delicious smells in the kitchen. He padded through the house, shivering in the chilly air as he went up two floors and then down a nearly abandoned hall-way. Luke almost wished he'd gotten dressed first but his curiosity overwhelmed any sense he'd had. Pausing in front of a door halfway down the hall he heard the muffled sounds of someone crying. Alarmed and fearing for a horrible second that it was his mother he shoved the door open and came face to face with an unfamiliar teen. 

Well. It wasn't his mother and Luke was pretty sure there hadn't been any teenager girls living in this residence yesterday. "Um." She looked at him, frightened and alarmed herself. Her eyes were swollen and red-rimmed and tears were still tracking down her face. The blue scrubs she wore were heavily wrinkled and her brown hair was mused and messy. She didn't look familiar, her small heart-shaped face and wide brown eyes didn't belong to anyone else he knew, but Luke still jolted with recognition. "Are you alright? I heard you crying."

She blinked wide eyes at him and rubbed a sleeve over her nose. "From two floors away?"

"Err. Are you hurt? My mother's a doctor. She's really great with cuts and bruises and stuff. Do you need me to go get her?"

"I'm not hurt." The girl shrugged, "Just...upset. Who are you?"

"I'm Luke," He edged into the room and held out a hand. "Who are you?" 

"Ryoo Naberrie." Ryoo said, "What are you doing here? I would have thought that your father wouldn't let you talk to me?"

"Why not?" Luke wasn't sure what could have happened in the few hours he'd been asleep but apparently something had. "What are you doing here anyway?"

"Um." Ryoo swallowed a bit and then jumped off her bed. "Didn't your parents talk to you?" 

"Not really. I just woke up. Did you get any sleep?"

"No. A little." Ryoo shook her head. 

"Are you hungry? I think Deno was making breakfast when I snuck past. If you're hungry then come on." 

"Luke." Ryoo stared at him. "I'm here because your father's supposed to keep an eye on me. I'm in trouble." 

Luke wasn't sure exactly what the situation was but Ryoo looked miserable and in need of cheering up. So he said, "Then father would threaten to stick you in time out," He shrugged when here mouth dropped open. "Come on, breakfast would cheer you up. Deno makes the best food." 

"I don't think I should." 

"But you have to eat sometime and..." Luke struggled for something to convince her with. He heard a gurgle and then beamed at Ryoo. "I know you're hungry."

"I should get cleaned up first." She finally said and Luke nodded and moved to wait in the hall. When Ryoo joined him she was wearing the same pair of scrubs but her face was washed and her hair had been tied back. "I don't actually know where to go." She told him. 

"Don't worry." Luke pointed down the hall. "I'll take you." They walked in relative silence until they reached the kitchen. Deno was leaning over a stove range of three different pots and Niles was polishing wine glasses no one ever used. When Luke and Ryoo wandered in both men stopped. 

"Young Prince," Niles hastily set the glass down and bowed the pair. "I was unaware you were awake. Ah," He caught sight of Ryoo. "Good Morning Miss Naberrie." 

"Good morning." 

"Deno has made breakfast, young lady and sir. Please take a seat and we'll bring it right to you." 

"You don't need to do that." Luke said, "We'll just eat in here." 

"Young sir." Niles looked pained and Luke frowned. 

"I eat in here every morning." 

"Yes, but." 

"So what's the problem." 

"We should probably eat in the dining room." Ryoo said, taking Luke's hand and pulling him out of the kitchen. "It's no trouble." 

"Yeah," Luke protested, "But I don't know what's gotten into them. They usually don't mind having eat in the kitchen. It's a lot friendlier." He knew why they didn't want Ryoo in there. They wanted to scratch a line in the sand to mark where Ryoo could and could not go. It wasn't fair and Luke was going to make sure it didn't continue. "I don't eat in the dining room unless I'm with mother. Even then its a pretty big if." Luke plopped into his usual seat and Ryoo took one as well. "It's just too far apart. Even with my parents here it's a little lonely to be that far apart." 

"I guess." Ryoo sat stiffly, nervously eyeing the walls and the doors. "So...do you always invite strange girls to breakfast?" 

"You looked like you needed a pick-me-up. Having some breakfast is important part of the day."

"Hmmm." She drooped and then straightened to plank-like qualities as the chilling hiss of a famliar respirator joined them. Luke didn't bother to pick his head up, he only flicked his eyes to the door that Vader was standing in.

"Morning." He gave a wave. "We're about to eat breakfast." His father surveyed the scene for a moment. 

"A word, Luke." Normally Luke would think of something clever to say but he got the sense that this wasn't the time to push any boundaries. Vader didn't look exactly happy. He winked at Ryoo and scrapped back his chair and joined his father in the hallway just beyond the dining room. He was careful not to stand or look defensive and angry but his own annoyance was rising pretty quickly. "What are you doing?" 

"Inviting a strange woman to breakfast."

"Have you not been informed of the situation?"

"No." Keep the words to the minimum and people would fill in the blanks for you. 

"Ryoo Naberrie is a political hostage." Vader felt vindicated when Luke's blue eyes flashed and the boy visibly struggled with his outrage. "It is distasteful for all of us. For the sake of any happenings in the future it is important for you to remain...unattached to this girl." 

"How?" Luke pursed his lips and forced himself not to cross his arms. "Why?" 

"Leave her be. She will attend classes as usual but when she is here do not interact with her."

"No." Luke failed his self-appointed task and crossed his arms. 

"Come again?" Vader asked and frowned at the short blond. 

"I'm not going to make her be lonely and miserable just because you told me to. If she's going to be living her against her will then at least I can make her comfortable." 

"She is a political hostage, Luke. It is the nature of her stay."

"That's stupid." He glared. "And unfair. You know what's wrong with the galaxy? People don't help each other. I'm not going to make some on unhappy on purpose." Vader snorted at the irony, "Just because you told me too." 

"You have little choice, son. This is not a request. Leave Ryoo Naberrie be." 

"No." Luke glared at the Sith. 

"Very well." Vader firmly escorted down the hall and then into Jifus' room. The doctor was pulling on her lab coat and gripping half of a bagel between her teeth. 

"Wath this?" She said past her bagel. Jifus settled her coat and then swallowed her bagel. "What's this?"

"Luke is." 

"I'm not listening to father to leave Ryoo alone." Luke said, glaring from parent to parent. "He says he doesn't want me to be attached. It's not fair to make her feel unwelcome." 

"Ah." Jifus rubbed her forehead.

"She's a guest!" 

"She's a prisoner." 

"But what has she done? Is she really a criminal? You said she was a political hostage which means that she's here because of someone else!" Vader tucked his thumbs into his belt, glaring. Luke glared right back. "And the only reason that she'd be here is because whoever she's being held against needs to be afraid for her!" Jifus ducked her head and finished off her bagel. 

"Luke," she said eventually, "the situation with Ryoo is delicate and uncomfortable for all of us. She's a stranger in our house. You've only just become part of the family and haven't had the chance to properly settle. I don't really want to make her unhappy either and we'd rather she'd be comfortable here but if we invite her into the family it could be a disaster." 

"We're not adopting her." He rolled his eyes. "I just don't want to find her crying. I found her crying this morning! She hadn't even gotten new clothes. The history books always told me that political hostages were supposed to be taken care of." He stomped his foot and only felt a little childish when his parents visibly leaned back. "What are you so afraid of."

"Young one," Vader said sternly, "The girl is here to ensure her planets obedience." 

"And which one is that?"

"Naboo." Jifus said. 

"That's the Emperor's homeworld!" Luke exclaimed, "No one there is going to step out of line! And none of this is an excuse to...to...isolate her! I just wanted to be friendly! Is that a crime now?"

Vader continued to glare at Luke and turned his gaze to Jifus. She was looking back at him with a an unsettled gaze. "Luke," she said quietly. "We don't want to isolate Ryoo but...Luke, it, we." She struggled to find words. "You can be nice and friendly." 

"So what's the problem." 

"She has a family, Luke. She doesn't want to be here and she hates your father and me. If you tried to invite her close she might not like it." 

"I won't make her uncomfortable by forcing her into unfair situations but I don't want to leave her alone either." Luke said quietly, shuffling his feet. "You don't have to invite her to be my sister but we can at least be nice and polite. Right?" Vader knew he was supposed to be saying something against Luke's proclamation. He was supposed to keep Luke and Ryoo separated but.... He still had affection for Padme and their niece was a spitting image of Padme. Identical to the last detail almost. He wanted his niece to be comfortable and happy which mean back on Naboo. She hated him and she feared him. As he justly deserved. He had a family here now and...the whole situation reeked of his masters meddling. 

"Perhaps you are correct." Vader said easily and Luke snapped his head his direction. "I caution you against becoming too attached." With that he spun on his heel and stalked from his wife's bedroom. The instant he left Luke kicked the floor. 

"What's going on?"

"Things beyond our control." Jifus said quietly and Luke felt cold fear prick his heart. With a gesture that was as much for comfort as it was to comfort, Luke sank into his mother's arms and held on tightly. "What are you going to do today?" 

"Study for my test." He said, "I don't have a lot of time."

"I'm going to be going to the hospital today so you're going to be relativity alone for a bit. Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine." Luke wasn't made of spun glass. Sure he liked the attention and the affection but he didn't want to be smothered. He had plans beside studying today too. "What is Ryoo going to do today?"

"She's got orientation at the Fifth Level Medical Academy. She'll be coming with me. It's on the way to the hospital."

"Okay." Luke nodded, "I'm going to go eat breakfast. It should be waiting for me." She nodded and unwrapped her arms from around him. Luke paused when she opened her mouth to speak and then she shook her head. "Go eat and tell Ryoo to be sure she's ready for class." 

"I think she needs some clothes."

"Ugh, I'm supposed to take you clothes shopping tonight. I forgot. Don't forget. I'll take you when I'm back, alright?" 

"Right." Luke could get his work done by the time his mother is back. "Right." 

#$#$#

Senator Organa was not waiting beside his daughter's bed when Jifus wandered in. One hand clutching a cheap mug of caf and the other a series of datapads. He was usually here according to the reports of her minions. 

"Doctor." Princess Leia leaned up and set her data pad down. There was a golden protocol droid standing at the end of the bed. His eyes glowed bright when he recognized her. 

"Doctor Vader." She grimaced. "I am C-3PO, human-cyborg relations." 

"He's here because Father doesn't want me to be alone." She said. "He's at the senate right now." 

"Ah." She slurped her caf and then started at the blue and white astromech watching her carefully from the corner. "And this one?"

"Security." 

"Doesn't look like much." Leia smiled. "He's a good friend of mine, please be nice. Artoo, come say hello to the doctor." The droid beeped but didn't move. "Artoo, be polite. She's going to be in here right now to help take care of me." Artoo didn't move. "I'm sorry," she told him, 'He's usually much nicer to doctors." 

"No worries. We need some more biopsies done. I'm going to walk you down to the room. Doctor Tel-da is standing by. You'll like him." 

"Okay." Leia pushed her covers back and carefully moved to stand. She was tiny. Her pale bare feet looked too breakable. Her hands like carved marble, eyes darker than space. Only part of it was Leia's natural slightness of figure. The rest of it was the consequence of her illness. 

"You can bring the droids." Jifus said, abandoning her caf mug and taking up a small hand. Princes Leia smiled. "They'll be good company for you." 

#$#$#

Luke had a hell of a time sneaking out of Vader's residence. There were security measures of the likes of which he hadn't even seen on some vaults. He manged it though, and wound up at one of the lower levels of the planet at one of the race tracks. For illegal racers, racing had no time but for the people that paid to watch and those that sponsored them, racing was usually done in the late night. The people at the shadowy track were not the rich elite that watched or the racers themselves. It was full of maintenance crews, wandering pan-handlers, a few dozen children with no where else to spend the afternoon. 

He reached the dock reserved for the swoop that used to belong to Black Sun. It was empty and bombed out. A few slurs were paint on the inside and the soot had been rooted through. 

"You made good time." 

"You made better time." Luke shuffled through the door to see the familiar outline of Gohan leaning against the wall. 

"I'm surprised mommy and daddy dearest let you out of the house." Red eyes sparkled with the promise of chaos.

"I'm lucky Mother has a sense of humor. She thought your stunt was hilarious, not truthful."

"HoloNet polls show that people think you're character is the cutest." Gohan said, idly peering at her fingernails. "And the best way to fool people is to tell them the truth." 

"Father doesn't cuddle me." Luke deadpanned, shuddering about that might be like. 

"Shame but if I can't give the people what they want in reality then I can at least create a alternate reality." 

"How do you even control so much?" 

"The great thing about having money is that no one questions your credits. Or you, if you have enough." 

"What did you want?" Luke grumbled. 

"To make sure you're alright, mostly." He shivered under the intense gaze. "Just so you know that if anything ever happens to you and you need us then I'll come for you."

"I didn't realize you were attached." Luke said to cover up his sudden emotion. 

"I am an idiot like that." Gohan told him. "Your replacement is going to be great. I've brought him here to work on his low level cons. Also, if your mother ever needs protection as well then I'd be happy to have her. I've been digging up some of her old files. She's a riot."

"What's she done?" 

"She hasn't told you?" Luke shook his head. "I'll let her tell you, mother-son bonding is good for the family soul." She blinked and then sighed, "Or so I'm told."

"Anything else?" Luke asked and Gohan nodded. Her expression shifted from mocking and humored to serious. 

"Yes. Something is on the horizon, a storm ready to break." 

"Poetic." Luke raised an eyebrow and Gohan preened. 

"I've been reading poetry but the point I'm making is that someone is making plans right now. A few someone's. The new boss on the outer rim is going to keep his nose clear but I think it's the Rebellion. I don't know enough about it but I have a feeling that when hell breaks loose its going to have you right in the middle." 

"Why's that?" 

"That's where the storm always breaks," Gohan smiled. Her pearly white teeth a jarring contrast to her blue skin. "Right over you. How do you think I found you in the first place?" 

"I was screaming and running."

"Exactly." 

"You don't really expect to find conspiracies, some you don't even understand, happen right to me do you?" 

"Let me put it this way." Gohan said, tapping a finger to her teeth and leaning in close. "I wouldn't be surprised. A word of advice. As Vader's son you are now an attractive target for a lot of nasty types. Until I can assess the threat brewing keep your head low."

"How much trouble are we talking?" Gohan looked grim for only a second before she smiled again. 

"Let's just hope it's not another war." She said and nodded a last time before making her way out of the bombed out swoop stall and then disappeared. Luke pondered her words and began to make his way back to the Vader residence. 

34343

Ryoo was not the only humans in the room. Her first lecture was crowded with dozens of aliens. Long-live species that could learn anything if given enough time. Kel-dor who lived for centuries and had perfected some of the most complicated techniques in the medical field. A hutt was lounging in the back with various tools as well. Since Hutts could live for more than a millenia she wasn't all that surprised. Still, seeing a hutt outside a crime syndicate was the shocking part. A few weequay and a dozen rodians. 

"Naberrie!" She jerked to the side as a heavy voice cracked over the room. A hunched over Anx shuffled to the section of the entrance way where Ryoo was standing.

"Sir?"

"Hmmm." The Anx was ancient but he had kind eyes. "Come to my office, young human." Ryoo followed him out of the lecture hall and into a large office a few doors down. There were two TA's standing beside a pile of papers looking annoyed. "Making progress," Professor Twe congratulated them. "Come, Naberrie." He waved her through the door and then into a seat. "I have been informed of your situation, young Naberrie." She waited for him to speak further. "By the Lady who houses you now. She was my student. A surgeon with few peers and I am much indebted to her for many reasons." Professor Twe tilted his head to the side and leaned across his desk. "I would not have taken a student so late for anyone else. The galaxy is not kind to the fixers and builders and caretakers. You will be tested beyond your limits, young human. Thrust into the forging fire with no preparation or protection. This is the reality of every student of medicine I have ever seen." Ryoo held very still. "Which is why I will not allow your status as a political hostage interfere with my grading of you. Nor will it be an acceptable excuse for you to miss class, lecture, or clinicals. You come here with the intention of becoming a doctor. Not to make excuses."

"Ah. Yes, Professor." 

"You will be living with a veritable font of information and resources." He told her, "Lady Vader is a skilled surgeon and a wise doctor. I am her friend and you must know that you have nothing to fear in her household."

"I don't." Ryoo struggled for words and finally nodded. 

"Come," Professor Twe gestured to the door. "Let us return to class." 

#$#$#$

Luke borrowed into a section of the library, pulling his datapads along onto the enormous chair that was secluded in one of the alcoves in the back. It was enormous and well-made, almost the size for a wookie for another tall alien. Along with being the biggest it was also the most comfortable chair in the library. A heavy table was to its right, empty but for a single datachip that Luke pushed to one side to make room for his own work. 

He wasn't a stupid person by any definition of the word but he was uneducated. Having lived as a thief and con-man in the last few years meant Luke had amassed staggering amount of the carefully hoarded wealth, not intelligence. 

Going through the practice questions of the exam though, he was cheered to discover that he could answer many of them due to his experience on the outer rim. He managed to write an entire practice essay about the current politics on Corellia (his second favorite system) without looking at the book or on the Net. A few of the art questions he answered easily, having stolen a number of them at one point or another. Or at least seen them close up. There were some hilarious questions about Imperial politics that were so obviously traps that Luke took a minute to laugh at the poorly worded question.He answered the way a stormtrooper cadet would answer and then puzzled for almost three hours over the literature questions. 

He didn't have much exposure to any of this. Unless it was a pilots shanty, some highly crude Corellian poem, or bank statements Luke wasn't going to pay attention to it. Once his head was buzzing and his eyes aching he set the datapad down and felt something like despair. 

"Young Lord?" Nile's' voice echoed from somewhere in the library. 

"Over here!" Luke called and Niles appeared from the alcove edge. The man's thin face showed genuine humor before it disappeared under a blank mask. "Yes?"

"I could not find you all morning, young lord." Niles said. "Where have you been hiding?"

"I was exploring." 

"If you're ready for lunch it is waiting for you in the kitchen. Deno has prepared one of his favorites."

"Okay. I wasn't making much progress with it anyway." Luke tossed his books aside and followed the man from the library. "I don't think literature is my strong suit."

"If you need any help then ask Deno. He taught literature at a university on Ryloth before the war." 

"War?"

"Ah, the Clone Wars. He changed his profession when the university was bombed from orbit, became a cook."

"Oh." Luke waved to Deno. "Thanks for lunch, Deno." 

"It is my pleasure." Deno waved a ladle. "I made some dust soup. How is your studying going?"

"Eh, I'm drawing up a lot of blanks right now. I've got sort of a gap education." 

"You are a clever child. I am sure you will do very well. Hard work is never to be shied from." 

"I guess." the last time Luke had had dust soup this good he'd been hiding out in a ratted out Tarkintown that had been one day from scheduled demolition. An old grandmother had made the soup for the remaining refugees that weren't able to leave until the next transport came back. He remembered the night vividly. Him and eighteen others scrunched up against a single wall while the nightly desert winds blasted sand and rock viciously about. The echoing sounds of demolition equipment and the conversation of Imperial officers had been ferried across the sands and amplified until it sounded like they were right next to the refugees. It had been a nerve-wracking and terrifying night, one that still haunted. The only spot of comfort that evening was the close warmth of the others and the bowl of soup that had been passed around. 

"Luke?

"Yes?" His eyes must have become glaze and empty. The way Gohan's sometimes did when she stayed still and silent for too long. 

"Are you alright?"

"Yes." He managed a smile that must have looked real enough because Deno turned back to his stove. "I'm just thinking about how we don't eat a lot of interesting food in the stormtrooper corps." 

"Of course." When Luke finished his soup and ran back to the library, he couldn't focus. He roamed up and down the shelves, running his hands over the chips and decorations. He was quiet, engrossed in his thoughts. 

He remembered the families he and his crew had pulled from sinking rubble. From the imminent destruction by Imperial boots. How many times he had gone into rebel war zones to pull people from the fires? How many times had their cons dragged them into trouble. How many people had he helped? How many had he failed? 

It wasn't as if he didn't know Gohan's scheme. To masquerade as the most ruthless team of con-men in the known galaxy in order to do some sort of good. There were empty planets now populated by the refugees and criminals and slaves they had helped. 

How could he be here? 

How could he call a man responsible for so much pain 'Father'. How could he stand above the heads of so many and luxuriate when he knew what sort of crimes were being committed? How could he be so comfortable when he had seen first hand what Vader condoned? 

Luke rubbed his nose. 

"I think protecting your friends and their endeavors is an honorable path." Luke rolled his eyes and ignored the blue ghost that was now floating by the scant poetry section. 

"What do you want, Jinn?" 

"You have done right by your friends." Jinn was dressed in odd robes. A tall human with a dry sense of humor and the irritating tendency to show up whenever Luke was having a bit of a panic. 

"You're dead," Luke told him, "Stay dead. Go get drunk in the afterlife and leave me alone." 

"You have willingly taken the same position as your cousin."

"My what?"

"Ryoo." 

"Okay?"

"You have leveraged yourself as something like a political hostage. This is to protect your interests and those of that clever thief."

"Okay." Luke paced back and forth down the aisles, "I'm not talking to you." 

"Your friend does not seem to hate you." 

"Everyone else will!" Luke said, forgetting that he was supposed to be ignoring the persistent ghost. 

"They don't know who you are protecting." 

"What if I slip and father figure's out what I'm hiding. What if he finds out that I'm the thief that stole his ship?"

"Do not fear what may come, Luke." Jinn said, putting on the infuriating air of a smug mysticism that made Luke want to punch him out of the spirit world and straight into hell. 

"Great, just great." His consciousness roiled with the implications of the future. Vader was second in command of the Empire. The Emperor was old and disgusting. He'd be dead one way or another but way of assassination or age. Luke didn't care which way that happened because when it did happen then Vader got the throne. If Vader wasn't ousted then Luke might be stuck with title of Heir Apparent. Luke could become the Emperor. 

It wasn't a bad idea, really. The future was a long way off which would mean Luke would have plenty of time to win friends and influence people. He didn't like politicians on principals but he could mingle with the best of them. But making a claim for the throne that might no even exist in ten years would be a stupid idea. Plus, he was a thief. Not a leader. It was best to remain ambiguous and in the shadows. 

Though he'd done away with that idea when he'd agreed to become Prince Vader. 

Luke tossed himself back into the chair and groaned. 

How could he be a Prince when the galaxy crumbled around them? How could his mother be a Lady of this house? She was a doctor! Her life was devoted to helping people and surely she'd seen what was out there? Didn't she know how much people were hurting? He covered his eyes and growled.

"Luke, circular thinking will only serve to frighten you. Do not think on this now."

"Go away, dead man." Luke ordered, keeping his palms on his eyes and reveling in the explosion of white and yellow dots behind his eyelids. The slight pain grounded him. "Go away." 

"I'll be here when you need me." Jinn promised and Luke felt the displacement of air and reality that meant the man was gone. He slumped in his seat and pondered how to be a thief and a prince until he fell asleep. 

He woke up to someone pressing a hand to his shoulder. Long ingrained instincts told him to punch whoever it was out but caution told him it was his mother. 

"Luke." He opened his eyes to see her leaning over him. Her gray eyes were amused and she was smiling. "Have a nice nap?"

"I couldn't focus," he confessed, uncurling and sitting up. "What's up?"

"We're supposed to be going shopping, remember. I have to take you to get new clothes."

"Oh." Luke did not want to go get new clothes. He wanted to go back to sleep and hope his fears would resolve themselves. He wanted an easy solution to the mess he'd gotten tangled in. He wanted to go back in time and tell himself to not go to Lothal. He wanted to sleep for eternity. "Okay."

"It won't take long," Jifus promised, "In and out in under an hour."

"Okay." Luke stood and followed her from the room.

#$#$#

Ryoo was half-asleep with facts and numbers rumbling around in her head when she returned to the Vader residence. The pilot said nothing as she stumbled out of the ship and then toward the kitchen. Deno offered a vague greeting when she wandered in. She ate and fell on the closest horizontal surface that wasn't a table. 

She didn't know it was Lady Vader's favorite couch. She certainly didn't see when Lord Vader swept into the room and stop right at the end of the couch. He had been so used to finding someone asleep on the couch when he returned from the Senate that Vader was more surprised to see that it was not his wife. His niece was slumped over the couch, loose limed and boneless the way only the young could manage. He paused.

"She returned an hour ago, milord." Niles said, coming up from behind. "The Lady and young lord are out shopping for clothes. They are taking longer than expected but the Lady assures me she will be back in time for dinner."

"Very well." Vader waved the man off. He retreated to the kitchen while the Sith glared down at the carbon copy of Padme. Finally he took the throw blanket from a chair and draped it over her. Unwilling to admit his weakness nor his attention to his niece, he stormed from the room. Hating himself.


	20. A Letter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bonding and separation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some shameless fluff for my readers and commenters out there.

A solid month had passed since Luke had been brought to the Vader residence and Ryoo had moved in. The blond was preparing to take three different school entrance exams. In the preparation for the exams he and his father had waged a silent, passive aggressive war over the best work table in the library. On nights when his Father won he’d take his studies to one of the dining rooms. As the month went on he’d sometimes do his studying wherever his mother happened to be relaxing. 

Usually she was sagging over a couch, reading a patient report. Sometimes watching a trashy holo opera that made Luke gag. Other time she’d just be staring into the distance, her hands tapping out unknown rhythms. A few days ago, she’d brought home a puzzle given to her by one of her interns. It was an old-fashioned 2-D puzzle, made of thick papers and printed with part of an image of a Corellian skyline. 

Luke liked to study or work or play in whatever room someone else was in. As much as he liked to study and be alone, he enjoyed company more often than not. Sometimes he’d go into his father’s office and read while the man worked on his Navy paperwork. Other times he took an empty section of the kitchen table and played his games while Deno and Niles worked around him. 

Well, if Luke was going to be honest…he was lonely and he knew he wasn’t the only one. 

“Mom?” He leaned around the corner, his test prep materials balanced carefully in his arms. The doctor was still working on the puzzle, spread across the enormous dining room table they never used. She was sitting on one end of the table, comparing a few pieces. 

“Luke,” she looked up, “Your father’s gone tonight. Aren’t you going to take the library spot.”

“He’s been gone.” He felt compelled to point out. “For a week and half now.” There was a secret smile of some sort hiding in the corner of her mouth. Luke squinted, wondering what he could have said that had amused her. 

“Apparently dealing with misbehaving admirals takes longer than usual.” She pursed her lips. “Do you want to study in here?” 

“I…I was actually going to take the night off from studying,” he lied, setting his books down out of sight and stepping fully into the dining room. “Do you want some help with that puzzle?” 

“If you like.” She waved him close as she slid off the table. Luke gave a grin as she tucked him under an arm and gestured grandly to the puzzle. “The skyline isn’t going to finish itself.” 

For a month Luke had both grown closer and more distant to both of his parents. Jifus seemed unable and unknowing how to connect with someone. She tried-bless her, she did. Her attempts to connect and feel something beyond fond like for someone were obvious and Luke felt it was unfair to point out that as often as she took a step forward she often slid two back. He’d put money on the emotional distance from everyone being more of a self-defense sort of adoption. He didn’t know for sure but he’d put money on it being a coping mechanism she didn’t know how to get rid of or move beyond. He felt if he actually knew stuff about her past that 

Well, Luke wasn’t mad at her, just disappointed. He wasn’t sure if it was selfish to want the sort of mother that was popular in the movies or the books. 

Vader. Well, he didn’t seem to want to connect with Luke. This probably wasn’t noticeable to anyone who wasn’t Luke. He didn’t want to think about him. 

“We should get more puzzles, that way there’s always something cool to do.” Luke said as his mother leaned back over the table and began lifting pieces up one by one. “I like them.” 

“We’ll see. The Opera House isn’t done. That’s the one I was planning on putting together next.” She seemed absent-minded. Luke took up a searching position on the other side of the table and put down three pieces to the opera house before speaking again. 

“Do you miss Father?” He ventured, twisting a piece between his fingers. 

“Hmmm?” 

“Father, do you miss him? He’s been gone a while and I thought you might miss him.” He looked up in time to see Jifus swallow an awkward cough.

“Do you?” 

“I guess. Don’t you think it’s odd he hasn’t written or called or anything? Sure he’s dealing with a bunch of embezzlers and stuff but that doesn’t mean he can’t spare some time to…talk to you. Or me.” 

“Do you want him to?” 

“I think it would be nice.” Luke grumbled, hating the soft affection on her face for just a moment. 

“Hey, if you want to de-stress before a big exam don’t try and freak yourself out. Just…relax. Think happy thoughts. Tell me about Corellia, have you ever been? I have.” She grinned and Luke felt his temper melt away, “let me tell about this crazy night I had after 34 hours in surgery. Someone I ended up at the bombed out royal palace and there was this…Well, let me start from the beginning.” 

#$#$#

He had been gone nearly a week and half before he even realized that he hadn’t thought of either his wife or his son or even his niece. The moment he’d left Imperial Center all thoughts of his waiting family had vanished completely. 

He felt a faint twinge of guilt at the thought. 

A whole week and a half. At least when Jifus was off on a conference or a Mobile Doctors mission he at least got a nightly update that told him she was still alive. It wasn’t personal, just an automated message sent to all the family of active Mobile doctors. But it was still a message. It was something. 

He surveyed the overturned office. Desks flipped around, papers and documents shredded, drawers opened and tossed about, torn curtains, ripped carpet. His men had been thorough in looking for further incriminating evidence. 

Admiral Fedi hadn’t been a talented or intelligent, only well connected. His tastes leaned toward ‘expensive’. There were a dozen or so antiques in the office that were being catalogued for evidence. A pile of credits that would make even a Hutt cry being escorted from the office safe and a thick stack of paper with the various writing materials lined up next to it. 

Paper was expensive. From the markings on the back this was the very expensive, the rare export of Kashykk paper. Made from the fallen limbs of the galaxies largest trees. 

Vader carefully picked up a single, string-bound stack and turned it over and around. Good quality paper was hard to come by. The industry was tiny. Only people who had the money to spend would bother with this much paper. 

“An unusual indulgence, Admiral.” He held the paper packet out to the admiral and the man’s eyes went wide and his face paled. 

“Ah, it was intended to be a gift, my lord.” The man babbled. Flanking stormtroopers shifted threateningly enough that the man’s lies began to spill out of him like an overflowing pitcher. “A wedding present for you, milord. I thought of it to be the perfect gift for you and your beautiful wife. Such a gift is.” The Sith contemplated slapping the liar with the packet but he abstained. The babbling continued as Vader indicated to the troopers to arrest the rouge Imperial.

When a trooper had packed the papers, and supplies into a bag he waylaid the man and took it. After all, they had been a gift. 

#$#$#

“You have your test in the morning. Go to sleep.” Jifus ordered Luke. The blond was leaning over the table, sticking part of the skyline into place when she spoke. 

“But it’s almost done.” 

“It’s also past your bedtime.” 

“It’s past Ryoo’s bedtime. She’s not in bed.” The brunette looked up from her text books. She’d joined the two of them in the dining room an hour ago. Dragging behind her an enormous bad of school texts and a take-out container of food. Ryoo had claimed Vader’s usual chair and had proceeded to ignore them both. 

“I’m studying.” 

“You never make Ryoo go to bed on time. She’s only a few years older than me.” Luke planted his hands on his hips. “That’s not fair.” 

“Luke.” 

“I am studying for my test. Unlike you.” 

“I’ve been studying too. For a whole month. I’m taking a break.” 

“The night before the test? That’s sure useful. Good job.” Jifus felt her eyebrows try crawl off her face. Ryoo was snippy tonight. Unusually snippy. 

“Hey, maybe when you fail yours by not showing up because you slept through your alarm clock you might not want to be so smug.” And it seemed Luke was snippy tonight as well. 

“Kids!” She clapped her hands to distract from the simmering argument. Luke and Ryoo got along fantastically. They ate breakfast together often, studied too. It was peculiar to seem them at such odds with each other. Ryoo and Luke both glared at her and then turned away in an angry sulk. “Bed time. Both of you. Ryoo, go up to your room. I don’t want to see you studying there tonight. Go to sleep. Luke, you too. Bed. Just because your father isn’t here to enforce the rules doesn’t mean that I won’t.” 

“But she!” 

“But he!”

“Do the both of you need a time out?” Luke and Ryoo both broke off with embarrassed sputtering. “No? Bed, go on. You both have tests in the morning. Remember to make sure your alarms are set for the right time. Shoo.” She waved her hands at them both. They exchanged a half-hearted glare, tempers already cooling. 

When they left Jifus heard them apologizing to each other in the hallway before separating. She waited for an hour, finishing off the last of the puzzle, before making her way to Luke’s room. She knocked and Luke cracked the door wide enough to let his head out. 

“Yes, Mother?” 

“Mind if I come in?” 

“Uh,” he bit his lip but opened the door all the way. His room was getting messy, probably to make it feel more lived in. “Sure.” 

“What’s wrong, Luke?” She asked, wandering around the room and looking at all the odd nick-nacks he’d managed to collect in the month he’d lived on the planet. “You’re upset.” 

“I’m not upset.” He lied and then grumbled when she gave him a disbelieving look. He scrambled onto the bed and angrily under the covers. “I’m just…I just feel…I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“Okay.” Luke blinked in apparent surprise. “Luke, if you don’t want to talk then don’t. If you need a few days to think about what your feeling then okay. I’ll listen when you want to talk, alright.” 

“Alright. You know, I don’t need to be tucked in.”

“I like doing it, it makes me feel like a proper mother.” She pulled the blankets up and smoothed them around him. He blushed from the roots of his hair to his hands when she handed him his stuffed nerf. 

“Thanks.” He whispered, face burning and Jifus grinned wide. 

“You’re going to do well on your test, I know it. You’ve worked hard for it.” 

“I did work hard. I didn’t read all those books on literature interpretation for nothing.” 

“I’ve got faith, kiddo. I’ll see you first thing in the morning.” 

“Night.” Luke called just as his mother was exiting the room. 

“Night.” As the door shut Luke buried his face in his pillows and squeaked his embarrassment. He was a thief. He was galactic menace and he was getting tucked into bed. After a moment, he resurfaced from the blankets and stared in the direction of the door. 

JIfus went to bid a polite goodnight to Ryoo and then the resident staff before going off to her own bed. 

#$#$#$#

Vader surveyed the wedding present spread across his desk. With the discovery of an underground Spice ring being from by the Admiral he was doomed to stay in this miserable place for a few days longer than planned. 

He did not want to stay but both the Emperor’s and Tarkin’s influence was too much. He left at their request. 

Paper. What was he going to do with paper? Why had even taken it? Why had it gotten his attention? Why? Angrily he stood up and began to pace the length of his office. After a moment, he felt a question tug at his mind and it wondered why he acted as he had. He had probably taken the paper for a reason. To send a message…Vader wondered at the incomprehensible idea floating around his head. 

During the war he had sent as many messages to Padme. In the most secret manner to avoid detection. Flowers to her office to let her know he was alive. Secret message hidden in various droids. Illegally encrypted holo calls. A dozen ways to speak to her without speaking to her. 

He was not hiding a secret marriage now. He was not some foolish boy who had no concept of relationships. There was no reason to pretend Jifus did not exist while he was off-world. 

He stomped around the office again. 

Their marriage had been an indecent public spectacle. Broadcast across the galaxy for all to gawp at. Every being with a holo connection knew he was married. (Which was probably the point.) 

Vader glared heartily at the paper before forcing himself to realize that fact that he was not a foolish, love-struck child. There was no reason to pretend he was not married when he was off-world. This was probably insulting Jifus, receiving no information from him for a week and a half. 

He could at least not be rude to his wife. 

Waffling and hating the indecision, he sat down at his desk again and opened one of the packets. His pen was poised over the paper for minutes while he considered what to say. 

After a while he set his pen to the page and began to write. 

Once he was done he stormed to the hanger bay where a ship was being prepped for take-off. This was a routine take-off. A supply run to Imperial Center for refilled containers, Imperial stamped materials and other like things. The two men loading the ship snapped to attention when he stomped up the ramp. 

“Where is the pilot?” He demanded and a lanky woman came stumbling out of the cockpit. 

“Lord Vader!” Before she could salute he shoved the folded and sealed letter into her hands 

“Ensure that this is delivered directly to Lady Vader. No one else. If there is evidence of tampering I will know.” Without another word he stormed off the ship and back to his quarters where he could comfortably sulk in privacy. The pilot sagged against the wall, gibbering and then collapsing into her seat. 

#$#$#

“So, what are you going to do today?” Jifus asked Luke. There were a dozen other parents with their children ranging from young to teenager.

“I’m going to do well.” Luke replied, his expression intense and focused. “I am going to do so well. I’m going to do the best I can.”

“That’s all you can really expect.” Jifus said, clapping a hand on his shoulder and standing. Luke was calm though, calmer than anyone else in the room. He was probably calmer than she was. Most of the parenting couples in the room were all tense too, their children picking up on the concern. 

A stern twi’lek entered the room. “People, when your name is called come retrieve your exam and take your assigned seat. If you cannot find then someone will help you.” Luke glanced up to her and Jifus gave him a grin. As children were called and then passed into the testing room Luke seemed to struggle with his rising nerves before he let out a stiff breath and nodded to himself. When his name was called, he winked at her before vanishing into the testing room. 

Jifus took her usual work in the waiting room where the other parents were all sitting around. Some of them were anxious, some bored, some sleeping, and a few pacing. She had just settled in to wait the afternoon away when a commotion caught her attention.

“I’m sorry, sir. This area is restricted for the moment. If you have a message then I may.” The school administrators voice carried over the room and Jifus stood, curious. 

“I can’t.” There was an anxious voice, “I was ordered to take it to Lady Vader directly. From her husband. I have to take this letter to her and only her.” Intrigued, Jifus made her way to the hallway where the pilot and administrator were standing. 

“What’s this?” Both man and woman sighed in obvious relief.

“Ma’am, this pilot claims to have a message from your husband.”

“I do, he told me to take it to you and only you.” The pilot looked terrified. Her hand was clenched around a pale brown slip of something.

“Alright.” She couldn’t imagine what her husband wanted to give her. If it was a message he could have left one at the residence. What would be so important he terrified an already anxious pilot out of her mind? Jifus felt her jaw drop as the pilot, still sweating profusely, passed over a piece of honest to goodness paper. When she looked down she found her name scrawled across the center of the folded paper in thick ink. 

She made her way back to her chair a little dazed and ripped the seal apart to find the single page written across in wide loops and swirls of her home worlds language. 

When had he taken the time to learn Axxilian?

‘Jifus,’ she took a deep breath and read the rest, ‘This letter may or may not reach you before the news that I will be occupied here for three days longer than anticipated. This is not my doing. Evidence gathered at the Admirals mansion suggests he was involved in a local spice smuggling ring. As this is unacceptable I will be intervening and investigating. I had not intended to stay longer than necessary. Please inform Luke I wish the Force to be with him during his exam. If I have not returned by the time the schools reply comes in then please send word immediately.   
This paper was confiscated from the criminal in question. It was offered up as a wedding present. He is probably unaware of the meaning behind such a gesture. Nevertheless, I intend to make full use of this gift as often as possible.’ 

At the bottom was the formal signature of her husband; usually used on treaties and such. Jifus felt her face flush and she used the letter to fan her face despite the curious gazes directed at her. 

It hadn’t even been romantic. It had been business-like and formal. It was like getting a letter from a complete stranger yet Jifus still blushed. She re-read it against before tucking it into her breast pocket and leaning back against her chair to catch her breath 

As she waited for her son to finished his entrance exam her mind continued to wander back to the last sentence the meaning behind it. 

“I intend to make full use of this gift as often as possible.” She grinned, reciting it and feeling the intention sink fully into her brain. “As often as possible.” She grinned like an idiot was unable to focus on her paperwork for the rest of the tests duration.


	21. Dial Turn

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Not much happens but some things do.

Agent Banaka was, what most people called, a busy body. She loved to pry into the secrets, uncover the lies, and unfold the truth. It was her absolute favorite feeling. She loved cases where no one would help her, where the informants ran dry, and the case was old. 

“You’re not giving me much to go on.” She told the semi-drunk breakfast maker in front of her. The man’s beard twitched as he frowned. 

“You don’t need to know.” 

“I do actually. You told me you lost your nephew on Corellia. One of the best places to hide him. You told me that you spent months looking through every hidey hole and scum den on the planet and still didn’t find him. There isn’t much else to go on.” 

“His name is Luke.”

“That is a very popular name, over a million people share it.” She pointed out, digging into her breakfast. “In this system alone. Buddy, I need information. He’s your nephew, what does he look like?” 

“You already gave a sketch.”

“Buddy, what does he look like?” 

“He…” the man hesitated. “He is very young, 13 now. He has blond hair, it could have darkened a bit since he hasn’t been…out in the sun as much.” 

“Okay.” She twirled a noodle around her fork, “go on.” 

“He has blue eyes, bright blue eyes.” 

“Describe them.” 

“I did.” The man blinked.

“Give me a comparison, give me…poetry.” She waved her fork, making a bright face at the man. He rolled his eyes and slugged back the rest of his drink. 

“He has his father’s eyes.” Ben looked away, his entire form slumping against the bar. “So blue, the brightest blue. The blue of a binary sun planet. They vibrated when he smiled, they burned when he was angry. Just like his father.” 

“What happened to his father?”

“He was murdered,” Ben seemed to deflate even further. “I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“Of course.” Banaka waited until Ben seemed more at ease. Letting him sling back another drink before speaking again. “what about his face?”

“Small.”

“Ben.”

“He has a soft face. When he smiled he had dimples, on either side of his face. He was just..ten years old and the whole future of ahead of him.”

“What about his hands?”

“Why does that matter?”

“His hands?”

Ben sighed again, “they were calloused. Somewhat, I suppose it was because he was good with machines. He could fix the treadmill droid every time it broke down. I…he could cook too. He helped his aunt cook all the time when he was little.” 

“Where is your wife now?”

“I…” Ben blinked at her, he’d become steadily inebriated and seemed surprised at question. “I don’t have a wife.”

“You said that your nephew helped his aunt in the kitchen…your wife?” 

“No, Beru was his aunt. Not my wife.” 

“Then you’re Beru’s brother?” Ben stared blankly at her. Banaka knew that stare enough to know that the man was working on a lie to tell her. The booze soaked brain cells were having a rough time apparently because he didn’t say anything more. “If you’re think up a lie…I’m not sure why you are.”

“Beru…is not my sister or my sister-in-law.” Ben said finally, apparently struggling to answer. “She and her husband raised Luke.” 

“So, a blended family?” 

“Ah, yes.” Banaka caught the lie easily and wondered at its existence. “So, Luke. He was ten when he went missing?”

“Yes.” 

“What happened?” 

“He…there was an argument, he wasn’t happy with me and then. He ran away. I went after him too late.” Ben buried his face in his hands, “it was my fault. I went after him and he…he wouldn’t come back.”

“Why not? Are you sure he heard you?”

“Yes.” Ben finally looked up. His eyes were watery. Banaka wasn’t sure if it was the shocking amount of alcohol he’d been sucking down or if it was sheer emotion. ‘I think that was the problem.” 

“Okay.” Banaka reached over and ripped the small tumbler from his hand and threw the delicate glass against the back wall of the bar. It shattered, the jarring noise seemingly jerking the bartender from his slump. He stood up and looked at Banaka like he was seeing her for the first time. “First, the drink isn’t helping you. I can’t get answers if you’re weeping all over the place. Second, were you a drunk when the boy ran away?”

“I…not really.” Ben glanced between her hand on the nearly empty bottled and the shatter glass behind him. 

“So, the drinking is new?” 

“More or less.” 

“How more or less?” Ben stared and said nothing and Banaka snorted with disgust. “Did you drink around Luke?”

“I would never!” He man sat straight up, his voice filled with a new accent. Posher, smoother, and his eyes flashed danger. “I would have never ever hurt Luke. Ever. He was my…I would never! I am not a violent man.”

“Yeah, yeah, I got that but you seem to be a weepy drunk, miserable and kinda pathetic.” 

“We all have our ways to cope.” Ben glowered at Banaka as if daring her to mock him further. 

Banaka nodded a bit and pulled the bottle closer to herself and eyed it. “What about his other relatives?”

“They’re all dead too.” Ben said flatly, “why are you asking me these questions. I thought you were smart enough to figure out where Luke was.” 

“I am brilliant.” Banaka agreed easily and she slammed the bottled against the ground beneath her stool. Glass went everywhere, bright green shards flying across the floor and air as their momentum carried them away from the point of impact. “Go back to Luke’s hair. You said it could have darkened?” 

“I…” Ben looked at a loose for words, his eyes tracking the still moving glass. “Yes.” 

“So, he had blond hair?” Banaka pressed and Ben nodded. “Bright sun bleach it out?”

“Yes, I…Luke’s hair just turned…golden in the summer. He, it was hard to tell the difference between him and the sand sometimes.” 

“Sandy planet?” Lost in thought, Ben didn’t notice he’d nodded. 

“Lonely?”

“Sometimes, the moisture farms weren’t…all that great. It’s gone through a lot of changes in the last three years.” Banaka glanced down at her datapad at the points she’d written down. There were no planets in the Corellian system that were sandy, sunny, and that had moisture farms. “He…he loved his aunt and uncle and I know they loved him but.” 

“But?” Ben shrugged.

“They were in danger, Luke was in danger. We had to leave and they didn’t want to leave but Luke and I did.”

“What was the danger?”

“Scum.” The man whispered, putting his head down on the table. “Scum.” 

#$#$#

“Boba Fett wants what?” Gohan and Aphra and Ezra all stared at Doora with varying expressions of shock. 

“Why would he be interested in you?” Aphra asked. “You’re tiny.”

“He wants to teach me. He said he’d be a great teacher but I told him I’d have his answer in a few weeks.” Doora glanced at Ezra. “Well?”

“I don’t know anything about Boba Fett,” Ezra shrugged and handed her a bowl of sliced fruit. “Here, you need food.”

“I like to think he’ll be a good teacher and mentor but I’m not sure if…he’s all that safe. He’s not like…I don’t know.”

“If you think he’ll do a good job, then go.” Aphra gestured with her fork, waving it her direction. At her side Triple Zero gave a binary sigh. Gohan frowned. 

“We’ll be down our hitter.”

“I still can’t believe that we have a pre-teen as our hitter.” Aphra muttered into her food. She was ignored. 

“We’d need a new member of the crew. At least temporarily. I don’t know anyone I’d trust enough for that.” 

“They’d have to be human.” Aphra added, “other aliens don’t fit up. NO offense.” 

“Contacts and some skin-dye and no one can tell I’m not human.” Gohan said, her unsettling pink eyes on Doora. “Well?”

“I’d keep my panic button by my side at all times.” Doora promised. “And leave a trail for you to follow. Gohan, I think this is a great opportunity. I could do it. Boba Fett is the best dang bounty hunter in the galaxy. He’d be a great teacher. I just feel like this is a great chance.”

“He’d a bounty hunter, not a con man. You’re a con artist. You’re a hitter. Not…a hunt them down and drag ‘em back. The money isn’t great.”

“But I am rich. I have the money from our Taa job, plus all of the tech toys I want from the tech company we scammed.”

“The choice is yours, Doora.” Gohan glanced around the room. Ezra was picked out the last of his fruit and Aphra was back to ignoring them. “But be careful.” 

“I will. I will. I promise. I’ll be back when you want some jobs done. All you have to do is send the message and I’ll pick up.”

“Fett doesn’t hear anything about what we do. At all. Tell him and you’re dead to me.” Gohan muttered half-heartedly as Doora ran out of the room. “Fine.”

“Have fun with that,” Aphra smirked, leaning against the counter and poking at the half-eaten pile of pasta in front of the alien. “What are you doing? You’re best grifter and your hitter?”

“I know, I know. We’ll have to run a few low cons to make up for their lack. A few back to back should work.” 

“Do we even know where Luke went?” Aphra asked, “you told us he was safe but not much else. Care to elaborate?”

“For his safety we can’t have more than a few people knowing where he is right now. If anything happens, I’ll let you know.” 

“Well, I hope he’s happy.” Ezra said, “I sure am. Hey, what about a trip to Manadalore? You said we needed to get some stuff there, I can practice.”

“A good idea, Ez.” Gohan grinned. “Aphra, did you get the research we stole from that dirty professor?”

“The one with tenure and grabby hands that we exposed?”

“Aphra.”

“Yes, I do. Why?” 

“Because, I thought you might like a trip.” Aphra squinted at the blue alien. 

“Are you trying to get rid of me?”

“I am. Ezra and I are going on a life-changing training field trip. Luke’s gone for a while and Doora’s going to get herself some training. Let’s take few months off and find our true selves.”

“You are a menace when you get a hold of self-help books. Fine! I’ll go. I’ll go find myself in the chaos of the galaxy! I’ll go but I won’t be happy about it.”

“Have fun!” Gohan called after her. “Lots of fun!” 

@#@#@

“Lord Vader.” The man paused, his attention caught by the lanky stormtrooper that was standing just outside his office door. Had he been force-blind he wouldn’t have recognized Agent Tove. 

“Agent,” he keyed the door open and gestured the woman in. “You are supposed to be on Imperial Center.” 

“Yes, milord.” The woman removed her helmet, her cool eyes swept the room and she set a small recording disruptor on the table. “I have heard some disturbing news.” 

“What is it?”

“In the last two years the power on the outer rim has shifted. From the Hutts and Black Sun to…someone. Someone is controlling the outer rim but none of my informants are sure who it is. The criminal push in the mid-rim is indicative that someone is pushing them out of the outer rim. Out of someone’s jurisdiction. Imperial presence on the outer rim is cursory and very limited.” 

“I know this agent.”

“I believe that the Four Crew may work for them.” Tove didn’t shift or look uncomfortable. Her eyes were now fixed seriously on his. “I think that using your disguise as Gentleman in the future would be useful.” 

“Explain.”

“Gentleman is already being searched for by the rebellion and an interested third party we can’t identify. Even the ISB has heard of Gentleman but the data dump of our investigation has kept them off you. Gentleman has several advantages and uses. I would like to begin using him.” 

“Explain how you would begin, Agent.” Vader’s eyes narrowed. 

“By buying a nightclub.” 

“A nightclub?”

“Yes, perfect for a base of operations. Excellent for information, perfect for hiding agents in plain sight. Space for meetings and even better places to make an impression on anyone you wish.”

“This is true.” Vader agreed. It was a good idea to establish Gentleman as another persona for him to use…just in case. “You do not consider the rebellion to be controlling the outer rim.” 

“I believe if the rebellion controlled the outer rim the entire galaxy would be aware. It is currently too weak for then to control such enormous amounts of people and resources. By setting up Gentleman as someone with connections and power we may be closer to both the Four Crew and the rebellion and the mystery figure on the outer rim.”

“How many days do you need to get the club completed?”

“Ten, at the most. And you would need to make an appearance, perhaps do a few job interviews.” 

“Job interviews?”

“With the dancers.” Tove nodded, “and maybe the bartender.” 

“We will delay here for ten more days, Tove.” Vader agreed, “do not fail me.” 

“No, sir.” She saluted, stuck her helmet back on and vacated his office. 

#$#$#$#

“So how do you think you did?” Jifus asked. Luke shrugged his shoulder and continued to stare out the window of the speeder. “Luke?”

“I think I did an okay job.” He said finally, pushing his forehead into the metal of the door and sighing. “But there were so many people who did so much better than I did. I could just tell. They were rich and had been to schools and stuff their whole lives. I just…kinda don’t feel great about the test. What if my scores aren’t high enough? And I felt like everyone else in that room was smarter then I was.” 

“Oh.” Jifus blinked at him and then reached over to tap his shoulder. His blue eyes stood starkly against the pale nervousness of his face. “Luke, there is no way to make sure that they were smarter than you. You are a very smart kid, you worked hard and you studied hard to do well on that test. I think you’re going to do fine. People who put in the effort to do well are going to reap what they sow. Okay?”

“Meh.” 

“Alright, alright. Sulk all you like. I wasn’t going to share the good news anyway.” Jifus waited until Luke looked at her.

“I could use some good news.”

“Your father sent me a letter.”

“A what?” He stared at the paper she produced. “A real letter?” 

“Yep!” She waved it a bit. “A real one. He says he might be back late but that he’s going to write when he’s gone.” 

“Wow!” Luke’s expression brightened. “That’s so cool.” 

“He asked me to tell you that he wishes you well on your test. So…good luck! A little late but better late than never!” 

“Sure, is he coming back?”

“He’ll be even later. He’s still investigating the admiral. Anyway, how do you feel about working on some more of the puzzle today?”

“I think that’ll be a great idea.” Luke nodded and leaned against the window again. “Maybe we could even get the Opera house finished tonight.” 

“Yep.” Jifus leaned over to pull Luke into a one-armed hug. “If we can pry Ryoo from her books and Niles and Deno from their stuff we’ll make it a party.”

#$#$#$

Tove found the perfect establishment after a day on the surface and spent the operations money like water to hire a cleaning crew, a new contractor to fix it up, a whole host of dancers, cooks, waiters, all of whom had previous experience. A dozen new contracts were made to buy food, water, alcohol, and furniture. 

Vader had to admire how fast Tove worked to get his alternate identity power and money on the planet. He did do interviews as Gentleman, slipping into the undercity to change into his disguise as he had done before. 

#$#43

“If you’re done being sad for the day,” Banaka leaned over the bar to poke at Ben. “There’s some new gossip on Prince Vader.”

“I don’t care about whatever child has been dragged into his mess.” Ben snorted.

“So? Come on, aren’t you a little curious. No public holos have been released, no pictures of him and the lady. All radio silence. Everyone is all really…intrigued. He’s probably going to be the next emperor. Aren’t you at least a little interested?”

“He’s been adopted by a monster and the idiot who married him.” Ben grumbled. “I don’t care at all.” 

“You’re so boring, Ben. Come on, core world gossip is the best kind of gossip. It’s interesting and I can laugh at the antics but trust me. The Vader family is the only one that is…boring so far but anything with Lord Vader interesting. He’s always fascinating.” 

Ben snorted miserably and dragged himself away from the bar. “I’m going to bed, Agent.”

“Cool, cool, cool. I’ll go to my job. That I’m late for. Should have punched in almost an hour ago. I’ve got to go anyway!” She waved goodbye, ran the rest of the way to her office building and began to type on her personal consol. At the end of the day, her data file was saved to a personal drive and smuggled from the building. 

##$#$#

“I didn’t call you.” Boba Fett stared at the girl standing at the base of his ship. Her jawa disguise was gone and there was an enormous crate next to her. 

“You didn’t need to. I tracked you here.” Boba glanced from the girl to the distant green prairie land he’d made into his current base of operations. The distant mountain framed the small girl. 

“How?”

“I’m good.”

“Huh.” Fett stared some more, “what did you bring?” 

“Some toys.” 

“I’m not stepping on dolls and little speeder models all day.” Fett told her and the girl shrugged. A moment later he saw a small blaster and a hand-held stun ray emerge from the crate. 

“I think my definition of toy if different than yours.” The girl told him, “Besides, I don’t have any dolls.”

“Not one? Not even a speeder model?”

“Speeder schematics.” 

“Huh?” Fett watched the girl activate the repulsors and push it up the loading ramp. “Did you bring toiletries? Bedding? Anything but toys?”

“Nope! Didn’t want you to be able to track anything. I’m going to need to go shopping.” 

“Right.” Fett watched her push the crate into the ship and rubbed his head. “Where is your ship?”

“I landed a few klicks away,” she answered, her small voice echoing back to him. “I walked here.” 

“Okay.” Feeling a little in over his head, Boba Fett shrugged and walked back into his ship. “Hey! Don’t touch that food, it’s still cooling! It’s not ready to eat!”


	22. Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A scandal arises as Leia's fears come to head. Luke gets some good news and Vader discovers some light.

“How do you feel today?” 

“About the same.” Leia looked up from her book as Dr. Jifus wandered into the room. “Are you going to take another sample today?”

“No need, we’ve got enough for a little while. Hello, R2, Threepio.” 

“Good evening, Doctor.” C-3PO waved, “we are very pleased to see you.” Jifus smiled at them and took the small chair directly opposite the child’s table that Leia was using. 

“Princess, how do you like puzzles?” 

“I don’t, I don’t know.”

“I brought one for us to work on!” Jifus said, “if you feel up to it.” 

“I need to study.” 

“Eh? Study, schmudy, you’ll get there one day but you’ve had a pretty rough week so I’m perscriping some relaxation time for you.” 

“Really?” Leia set her datapad aside and watched the doctor remove a sizable box from her bag. “You can do that?”

“Sure,” the woman winked, “special privileges. The same ones that say I get to put the smoochie poos on my husband.” 

A startled laugh worked out of Leia’s mouth before she clapped her hands over it. “What?” 

“Smoochie poos,” the doctor made an exaggerated kissy face. “On my husband.”  
Leia giggled from behind her hands as little pieces were dumped onto the table. “Gross. I will never kiss anyone.” 

“Eh, it’s not for some people.” Leia picked up the box and examined the image there, “what planet is this?”

“Mine.” The Princess traced the image of an empty field with a lot of flowers and the remains of a shuttle. “Turns out I can get one’s special made for me.” 

“You could get one of yourself.” Leia said and looked up in time to see the doctor’s face light up. 

“Ohhh,” she pulled out her datapad and began flicking through her files and orders for a few minutes. “I’ve got a perfect picture of me that would make the most perfect puzzle.” 

“I was joking.”

“I’m not,” Jifus crowed as she sent in a new order. “This is going to be hilarious.” She turned to the puzzle again and began sorting through the pieces. “It’s always good to start with the side pieces and work your way in.”

“I’ve never done a puzzle.”

“Why not?”

“I guess,” Leia sighed and fiddled with a few pieces, “I never got the chance. School work and…studies and such. I…never really played games. Sometimes, with my friends or with my parents but I.”

“Did you want to?”

“It is an honor to prepare to serve my people,” Leia said a bit stiffly and Jifus raised a hand in surrender. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get upset. You’ve done so much and.” She looked down. “I did not mean to…get upset.”

“If you think that is upset then you’re very wrong. I’ve seen upset, that is…mildly annoyed. I don’t blame you though. For me, puzzles are a way to connect things, a pay to relax.” Jifus attached two pieces together. “Also, a way for me to think on problems I haven’t solved yet.”

“Like how to cure me?” Leia wondered and Jifus’ expression flickered. 

“Yeah, like that.” 

“I’m not blaming you for not trying and I appreciate you trying but…Father told me for how much longer I have left to live.” 

“Princess.” Jifus leaned forward and Leia shook her head. 

“I asked him and he promised to never lie to me when I was little. I held him to it. He didn’t want to. Eight months, that’s long enough. I suppose I have a lot to be thankful for. I’ve been loved a lot and cared for and I know that one of the smartest doctors is doing her hardest to help me.” Leia smiled. “And I know the throne I can’t take will be passed onto one of my deserving cousins. They started teaching her once I learned how much longer I had.”

“Leia.” 

“I’m alright with dying, Doctor.” Leia told her seriously, “it happens to everyone at some point or another.” 

“Not yet,” her voice was scratchier than normal, “it doesn’t have to be so soon.” 

“If I die,” Leia said as she began picking out corner pieces as she spotted them, “I will not blame you. My mother and father would never blame you either. If I survive then it will be your greatest triumph and you will be lauded the galaxy over.” 

“You’re awfully calm.” 

“I..I might be being a little callous. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be.” Leia froze and seemed to struggle with her words until Jifus held up a hand. 

“Are you resigned to death?”

“What?”

“Are you resigned to death?” Jifus asked and Leia seemed to struggle with an answer. 

“I am…ready to accept whatever happens.”

“And you don’t seem much interested in the other possibility. The one where you survive this disease, this ailment. You’re already telling me that you don’t blame me for something that hasn’t’ happened yet. It seems to me like you’re pretty much just waiting at this point.” 

Leia almost looked ashamed, she turned away from the table and leaned against the smooth dome of R2. 

“That’s not, Leia. I don’t blame you if you’re afraid.” 

“I am not afraid.” Leia snapped, still not turning around. “I am fine.” 

“Being afraid in something like this is normal. You’re not the only one, Princess. Not in this galaxy, not even on this floor.” Leia didn’t look around. “A lot can happen in eight months, anything is possible.” 

“You can do the impossible, Doctor.” 

“I have,” Jifus said quietly, “many times, again and again and I will do it again.” 

“Please don’t make a promise to me that you can’t keep.” 

“I won’t.” Jifus set down her puzzle pieces, “I’m going to ask you to do something though.”

“What’s that?” Leia snorted, “have hope? To care? To do something besides wait for death. There’s no point. I’m…all by myself with this disease and you’re the only person in the whole galaxy who knows anything about it. I’m just being practical. Why waste time on what would only make my last few months worse?” 

“That’s one way to look at it.” Jifus said quietly, “it’s always easier to give into despair, and to suffer admirably. You have good reason to and I don’t think anyone would blame. It’s not a way to live though.” 

“What do you know about despair? What do you know about anything like this?” Leia snapped, her voice hitching. “I’m just. I don’t want.” 

“But trying to do anything gives you focus. It gives you something to do even as the future looms. You have something to try for.”

“I don’t’ want to try for anything!” Leia cried, her voice breaking completely and she slumped again her droid, crying. “I just want…I want it all to stop! The tests, the loneliness, being here! I want to go home and be with my father and mother! I want to go be with Winter and even my Aunts.” 

Jifus moved to stand and aborted a movement to touch her shoulder ben Leia reared around on her chair and launched herself at Jifus. The princess sobbed into her stomach, wrapping thin arms around her waist, shaking from the force of her cries.

She didn’t spare a moment, hefting the princess up as best she could she settled down onto the bed with the girl in a comforting embrace. There wasn’t much for her to say and there wasn’t much she wanted to say. 

The doctor had been in this position too many times for her to ever be comfortable with it. Since any of her words of comfort would sound either condescending or mocking, she stayed quiet. Settling for holding the terrified princess through her moment of darkness. 

#$#$# 

Luke was supposed to have been nearly two hours ago. If his father had been home, he would have been. As it was, both his parents were absent. 

“Sir, you really should be going to bed!” 

“I can’t.” Luke waved at Niles and Deno from where he paced in the living room. “Mom’s not home.” 

“Young lord, the lady will return in due time. IT is imprudent and you are being disobedient by being out of bed still. You were ordered to mind me,” Nile told him, looking dead on his feet. 

“But she needs to be home. She needs to come back.” Luke twisted his fingers together and glanced back at the door. “I don’t…I need to make sure she comes back.” 

“Where else would she go?” Niles asked, dragging a hand over his face. Luke bit his lip and continued pacing. He wasn’t sure he could share his mounting insecurities with either of them. 

“It’s pretty late, don’t you think we should call the hospital?”

“Prince Luke, I am sure she is fine.” Deno said, “the lady is very experienced.” 

Luke was about to retort when the door hissed opened his mother stepped through. Deno and Niles were on their feet in an instant. 

“My lady?” She didn’t glance at them, waving both away. 

“You’re both dismissed.” She said and Luke winced when her tired eyes finally rested on him. The staff filed from the room as she flopped onto the couch with a groan. She rested her elbows on her knees and buried her short hair in her hands. Luke watched her as her entire form seemed to decompress visibly. 

“Mom?” Jifus looked up, her eyes were rimmed in red and lines and shadows. 

“You’re supposed to be in bed already,” she said, her voice empty and her words sounding physically painful to say. 

“I…you got home late. I wanted to make sure you were alright.” He inched along her side until their knees were touching. “Mom? Are you okay?”

“Rough day.” She said and reached out to snag him into a hug. He was pressed against her side, almost shielded from the outside universe by trembling arms. Luke bit back the sudden emotions the rose as he felt chapped lips press against his head. She held onto him like he was a lifeline. “A really rough day.” 

“Okay.” He leaned against her, unconsciously echoing the exact pose the princess had had. 

“You need to go get ready for bed, Luke.” She drew back but didn’t let him go. His hair was pushed from his eyes, her smile was a valiant effort but obviously strained. “You know the rules.” 

“I was worried.” Luke said, looking down, “I couldn’t sleep anyway.” 

“Right.” She patted his head and stood up. “Well, I’m going to bed. You go too.” 

“Alright,” Luke watched her amble from the room, feet dragging and nearly listing enough to fall over. He waited until he watched her make it to her room before going to his own for bed. 

##43

There was a letter on her pillow. Addressed to her in the now familiar handwriting of her husband. The black ink was a little smeared and there were spots of dried water across it; like it had been in the rain. It distantly charmed her to think of her enormous, hulking husband trying to shield a letter he was writing even as a storm raged. It was charming that he was writing as all. 

Luke must have set it there. 

She dropped her lab coat to the ground and her shirt and pants before flopping onto her bed and picking the letter up. Unfolding it, she had to retrieve her reading glasses from her bedside table before she was able to read the letter. 

Jifus,

I should be returning shortly after this letter reaches you. My apologies for my prolonged absence. The storm on Etta 3 is preventing troops and materials from breaking atmosphere. I would have attempted to depart anyway except a landslide in the southern hemisphere of the planet required the assistance of my available troops and supplies.  
When the opportunities arise, I will send this letter among the first transport off-world. 

There were no rebels on world. A rumor started and false evidence presented by the governor who was discovered to be blaming ‘rebels’ for his attacks on his own citizens. Given the accelerated collapse of the Hutts control on the outer rim I suspect the governor was losing a significant portion of his bribes. Upon discovering that the Hutt were no longer backing the man the people began to defend themselves of his corruption. In an effort to stay in power he used the imperial garrison as a personal enforcement racket. 

This failed and thus a request for my eradication of the rebels came to be. In my first few days I suspected much was wrong with him. His lies were obvious in the force and I suspected that wherever I went was prepared beforehand to prepare for his lie. 

I found out the truth of the matter when I made my way into the city proper wearing my shopping cloak. Under this disguise I found the city in a truly sorry state. Troopers, corrupted and bribed, had abandoned their oath to the Empire. I also found a group of young ones, hardly four years older than Luke, fighting an admirable battle. Choosing to wreck destruction upon the governor even as his ‘reinforcements’ arrived. 

The leader of the group was a girl named Hel Troy.  
The doctor eyes widened as she took in the sketch of said leader in the margins of the letter. Dark hair, pale eyes, a haggard face of an underfed teenager. An odd hat rested on her head lazily. She traced the sketch with her finger, admiring the sure and clean lines that brought the girl to life. Jifus returned to the letter. 

The second was a young officer of the Imperial Army that was the only of his cohorts who did not fall to corruption. Tully, the boy, stole the necessary weapons and tools for the defense against the governor to be possible at all. 

There was another sketch, this time of a young-ish man in Imperial grays and a worried expression. 

A great deal of respect rests between them considering how much at odds they had been only a few months prior. I am told that the young Troy was arrested multiple times by the young man for the exact crimes he was also committing. Young Troy is a reckless driver but an experience leader. Given the opportunity I would induct the girl into a number of the forces if her attention was not wholly focused on her planet and her people. An adventure followed, one I will relate when I return to you, and I removed the governor from his position. Young Tully has taken his place. I trust the boy will not fall to the same crimes as he has already proven to be steady in his convictions. 

Despite the proposal to Troy, she has remained on Etta 3 to aid the new Governor. 

In a few days, Jifus. 

She folded the letter back up, admiring the story and his promise. The letter had gotten longer as the month has worn on. Vader constantly being dragged off to one crisis or another. He still wrote with regularity, almost daily. Someone would approach at any hour of the day. A soldier, a wounded trooper, a limping officer, a droid, a medic, a pilot, and hand her a sealed letter with her name on the side. 

Too tired to consider how it was now the talk of the Court and the galaxy at large, Jifus set the letter to the side and rolled over; falling asleep almost instantly. 

#$#$#

Vader returned to Imperial Center at four in the morning. A time when even his wife was asleep. It wasn’t a planet that ever slept but it was obvious that most sentient were sleeping somewhere. 

His residence was no longer dim in his force sense, no long devoid of light. Now, it almost glowed against the sickly dark backdrop of the Capital Grid. He did not meet with the Emperor this early in the morning but made his way home immediately. There was no staff to greet him, as was customary, but he did not mind. 

First, he checked on Luke. The blond was tossing and turning from troubling dreams. His small face was pinched in fear and he clutched the stuffed nerf, terrified. Tears were tracking down his face and he was muttering nonsense Vader could not understand. Vader knelt beside the bed, reaching for the dream. It flared pain and terror to such a degree he brushed it away instantly. After a moment, it was gone and he guided the unconscious boy into a healing trance which would grant him a dreamless sleep. 

Luke hadn’t indicated he suffered from nightmares, he thought as he tucked the blanket around the thin shoulders. The boy was calming, his breathing evening and his face clearing. As the healing trance sucked Luke down, his entire body went limp. Satisfied that the boy would sleep as long as needed, he turned to find his wife. 

Jifus was sprawled over the head of her bed, laying across the dozens of pillows his interior decorator had insisted on. Her glasses were set on her face and his latest letter was set on the other side of the bed. 

Her exhaustion was plain in the force even as she slept. 

Satisfied, Vader made his way back to his own room and slept longer than he had in a decade. 

#$#$# 

The slow afternoon that the Vader residence was indulging in was interrupted, rudely and painfully, by a very nervous aide. 

“Ensign,” Lady Vader poked at the sleeping form of Ryoo that had returned from a late-night rotation at a clinic. The girl shifted on her seat but didn’t lift her head from the table. “What brings you here? Don’t you usually wait for my husband at his office?” 

“I do, milady.” He twisted his cap between his fingers. “I do have bad news, though. That need his.” 

“JIFUS!” The woman blinked, startled and Ryoo lurched up from the table. Ensign whimpered as the shout echoed through the residence. 

“Don’t worry,” Jifus glanced down at her brunch and opened up her datapad. “He’s just mad, not at anyone in the rooo…oom” She stared at the first article that was open on her padd. Her face twitched and the ensign swallowed nervously. 

“That’s what I needed to tell him. The article on the most popular Holo zine was about you.” Jifus didn’t respond, too surprised by what sat before her. Vader stormed into the room and she finally looked up. 

“Have you seen the paper?” Vader asked quickly and Jifus raised her eyebrows as she raised her padd. “Ah.” 

“Did you know this was going to be here?” 

“MOM!” Luke sprinted into the room, half dressed and hair flying randomly about. “MOM! Don’t look at the!” 

“Too late.” Jifus leaned back in her chair, “I’m surprised they bothered to write about me at all. Look at this. Not exactly flattering is it. Luke, go get dressed. Ensign, have you eaten?” 

“Yes, ma’am. “

“Go get a snack from the kitchen. Spouse,” she stood, “let’s go.” They retreated to their shared office and Jifus finally hurled her padd against the opposite wall. It clattered to the ground. “WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?” 

“A deeply insulting article. I will have the editor punished.” Vader promised, he summoned the datapad to himself. “I am sure there is a great number of crimes I could frame him or convict him of.” 

“I don’t even know what it says! I…what kind of tag line is that? Lady Vader, Overweight and Old and still working? What the hells?” She stomped around to her couch and fell onto the comfortable pillows. “What does it say?” 

“It outright says that the editor and writers consider you to be deeply unattractive.” She snorted. “And…having and overinflated sense of skill and entitlement. It implies that you are bedding a number of my Grand Admirals, officers, and cadets as well as a Grand Moff or two.” 

“I haven’t had sex in a year!” 

“Indeed?” 

“I haven’t had the time.” Jifus shrugged, “what else does it say?” 

“It also says that Luke is your child out of wedlock, which is why you adopted him.”

“We, we adopted him. Not me. We. Us. A team.” 

“Also, that you spend more money that I can make. The rest of the article seems to apply unfair stereotypes to your whole personage and our marriage.”

“Unbelievable.” 

“How would you like me to deal with this?” 

“Don’t,” Jifus said, not moving the hands covering her eyes. “I’ll deal with it.” 

“How?” 

“I think the editor is due for a physical.” 

“Of course,” Vader agreed, automatically planning how else to exact his revenge on the man. 

“What time did you get in last night?” Jifus asked and Vader took a seat at the end of the couch. 

“Early this morning.” 

“Deno told me you were back but this is actually the first I’ve seen of you in a month. Thanks, by the way, for sending me letters. I didn’t know you could sketch. “

“I can.” He paused, “you enjoyed them?”

“Yes, it…makes it feel like you’re not gone for as long as you were. Luke missed you.” 

“I will give him a flying lesson today.” 

“He’d like that.” They sat in silence for a moment. “Well, not what I expected to wake up to.” 

“No.” Vader agreed.

“Oh, our too formal invitation came in for the…ball thing that’s going down in a week or two. I think it’s something self-satisfied to fit the pompous asses in the court.”

“More than likely.” 

“I’m going to need a new person to make my dresses or whatever. If I let the man near me with another hideous gown I will be an oath-breaker.” 

“As you wish.” This had already occurred to the slowly reforming Sith. It wouldn’t do to have his wife dressed poorly. If she was going to have to suffer the annoyances of an Imperial ball then she could at least be fashionable while disgruntled. 

“You know, I’m not even really mad about the article. I’m just mad that Luke saw it. Plus, all of co-workers and my patients. I…ERHGH! Excuse me, Kit, I have to go plot my revenge.” She hoped up from the couch and scurried out and then back. “Okay, Luke would love a flying lesson and the acceptance letter from the school hasn’t come in yet. He’s sort of tense about that. If you could help him on that that would be great. Smooches.” She blew a kiss his direction and vanished. He stared at the door where she’d vanished and returned to the message that had been left on his datapad. 

343434

Luke wondered how much buying a holozine would cost. If he and Gohan both bought it they could share controlling interest in the zine and thus what it published. It wasn’t as if he didn’t have money sunk into a few popular Net shows and some zines already but he’d never thought about buying one. His false identity was known for making solid investments in companies, which meant where he went a lot of other people followed. 

There had to a cheaper way of getting rid of the editor. He didn’t want to bolster the company that had published such an insulting article. 

“Son.” 

“Oh, hey.” He hadn’t seen his father in a month. It seemed longer. Warily, he eyed the man. “Um.”

“You are distracted.” 

“I’m worried about mom. “

“She has the situation well in hand.” The man answered. “Something else distracts you.”

“Nope.” He lied.

“You’re lying.”

“I’m not.” 

“You are.” 

“I’m fine.” Luke bristled. He didn’t really want to talk about the nightmares he’d been having. 

Vader inclined his head, “as you wish. We have a meeting at the academy. The head administrator has requested a meeting.”

“Good news?” He asked, terrible hope fluttering in his chest and Vader seemed to shrug. 

“It is unknown. You need to finish dressing and eating. We will leave as soon as you’re done.” 

“Oh, alright.” He moved to stand but poked at Ryoo. “I think she needs to go to bed.” 

“Kriff off, Luke.” Ryoo muttered, half asleep and exhausted. A few more colorful words of old Nubian slipped from her and Vader seemed appalled and impressed at the same time. Luke blushed to the tips of his ears, not sure what she was saying but knowing it was ugly. 

“Language, young one.” Vader chided and Ryoo peeled back a gunky eyelid long enough to shoot him a glare. “Move yourself to your room or I will move you.”

“You wouldn’t dare.” Ryoo sniped and Luke shook his head frantically. 

“Don’t do it. He doesn’t bluff. Don’t!” 

“Hmph.” She dropped her head back to the table and ignored them. Luke groaned as Vader took up a position behind her. 

“Ryoo. He’s not joking.” 

“Okay.” Luke covered his eyes with his hands as Vader hoisted the boneless teenager from her chair. IT was a testament to how tired Ryoo was that she didn’t even squabble. 

“Go get dressed,” his father ordered as he carried the now sleeping teenager from the room. Luke did as he was bid, laughing to himself as they vanished from view. 

Vader’s grip was gentle but firm and he set Ryoo on her bed with great care. She was his niece after all. As much as he did not want her here and as much as she reminded him of Padme, it had become easier to remind himself that Ryoo was not his wife. She was not her aunt. 

She was Ryoo. A smart soon-to-be doctor with drive and passion to care for people. 

It was a good place to start. 

#$#

“Did she even tell you what she wanted?” Luke asked twenty minutes later. The speeder was headed toward the academy and he was fiddling with a small piece of machinery that had been left with his other bits and bobs of machinery. He didn’t recognize the piece but it was his favorite for reasons he hadn’t been able to fathom. 

“No, only a meeting was requested. Are you nervous?”

“A little,” Luke admitted, “you sure sent Mom a lot of letters.”

“It is only courteous,” Vader said, guiding the speeder into the clogged air traffic of the Imperial City grid. 

“Oh.” Luke kicked his feet back and forth. “But what about romance?”

“Romance?”

“Yeah, don’t you guys love each other?” 

“Your mother and I have great respect for one another,” Vader answered and Luke huffed. 

“That’s not the same. “

“It is better.”

“Why?” 

“It simply is.” 

“That isn’t an answer,” Luke pointed out as the speeder parked in the designated visitors area and they both climbed out. “Don’t you want romance and love and stuff? Are you going to do anything about the nasty editorial? Huh? That’s seems pretty disrespectful considering you’re the heir apparent to the throne.”

“It will be handled, son.” Vader said and guided him, unnecessary, through the wide doors and met the administrator’s aide. 

“Thank you for coming,” the woman bowed slightly, “if you would please follow me.” 

“Hi,” Luke waved at her. She glanced at him. “How’s your day going?” 

“Fine, thank you.” Luke saw her eyes widen as he slipped out of his father’s grip and reached over to take his hand. “And yours?” 

“More or less okay. Just a little nervous, I don’t think I’ve ever had a meeting as important as this one. Is this an interview? Does the school do interviews?”

“I am not sure enough to answer,” she said and looked marginally more relaxed as she led them to a section of the school that was not an office. It looked like a garden, one of the conservatories attached to the academy. “Please, she is waiting for you both though there.” Luke winked at her before they stepped through the double doors. 

It was a beautiful conservatory, built for easy accesses for all of the students. There were a lot of tree and flowers. The severe looking twi’lek that Luke recognized from the schools pamphlet was standing next to a water feature. She looked like she was feeding fish.

“Good afternoon and thank you for coming.” She turned and gave a nod to both of the them, “Lord Vader, nasty business in the news this morning.” 

“Indeed,” he dropped Luke’s hand and crossed his arms. 

“Young lord, it is nice to meet you. I am the administrator of this school.”

“Hi,” Luke swallowed down a sudden surge of terror. “Um, what did you want in particular?” 

“Simply to talk to you, if that is alright with your father?” Lord Vader waved them off and Luke hesitantly approached. “What do you think of this garden?”

“It’s really nice.” He told her honestly, “I love gardens and water features.” He looked down to see little fish swimming beneath leafy fronds. “What is this place?”

“We have a botanical conservatory that is specifically for our botany classes. This one,” the aged twi’lek gestured at the room, “is for recess and relaxation. It is a favored place for our students to study. And often hosts dinner parties for school events. Tell me, you have attended several stormtrooper academies; what are your thoughts?”

“Um, they’re really strict.” Luke followed behind as she walked away, “And not all that fun. You could get in a lot of trouble for stuff that wasn’t all that bad. We didn’t learn anything interesting. It was all…rigid.” 

“And you do not enjoy rigid?” He looked up, her green eyes were considering but patient as he thought of an answer. 

“Not really. Home isn’t rigid and strict. I just…wanted to learn but they wouldn’t let us learn anything beyond our curriculum. We just got these really bad worksheets and super lame tests and it was all…dumb. I guess. I learned how to fight though.”

“Hmm,” they ambled away from the fish. Luke looked back to his father who didn’t seem to follow him. “What are you interested in?” 

“Interested in?”

“A field of study or even a little curiosity you have about something. What is it? Everyone has one.”

“I…I like flying and fixing things. Father’s teaching me how to fly um…I like droids. That’s all I’ve got right now.”

“What about in the future?”

“I guess,” he stared at her, “I want to help people.” 

“Why?”

“My mother does. She’s a doctor and I think father does too sometimes. And,” Luke frowned as something swam to the surface of his mind. It wasn’t anything he could remember hearing but that didn’t mean much sometimes. “One of the biggest problems in the galaxy is that people don’t help each other.” 

“What does that mean to you?” 

“I just want…I don’t really know. Ma’am, did I fail the test?”

“Hmm, no. Scores are irrelevant anyway. We look to see how you answered the questions, not if you got them right.”

“Then why the meeting?”

“I have a number of people on the school board telling me how your application should be handled. Many powerful women and men have differing opinions on if you should be admitted or not into the school. That is not how I run this school and decided to see for myself.”

“Did I pass muster?” 

“Hmm,” she reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of flimsi. Luke accepted it and whooped as he read the first line. He jumped about and wrapped his arms around her in an enthusiastic hug. 

“Oh, thank you! Thank you! This is so exciting! YES! YES!” 

“You may want to go tell your father.” She said and Luke took off, hollering. 

“Father! Father!” He skidded to a halt beside the man, “I got in!” If his father was surprised by his hug he didn’t show it. “I did it! I get to go here! Isn’t this fantastic!” 

“Indeed.” Vader patted his head and Luke bounced around him. “Perhaps you should take a tour of the school you will be attending.” 

“That’s a great idea!” Luke said and took off for the door, whooping. As soon as he was gone Vader turned to the administrator who had emerged from the trees. 

“Administrator.”

“Lord Vader.” 

“What was his score?”

“Irrelevant, we only take those to please the statistics majors at our attached universities. As I told your son, we look more to how the questions are answered.” 

“I supposed Tarkin threw enough of a fuss?”

“He was adamant I deny young Luke a seat but that is not how I allow students in or out of this school. It is by their merit, not by their parents or financial status. “

“I see,” Vader hooked his thumbs on his belt, “what is your question?”

“Our graders came across a very curious pattern to Luke’s test answers. Several, in fact. Firstly, his expertise in several subjects is odd, considering his background of academies. He knows a great deal on art and artists in the history of the galaxy. He also can give a critical assessment of current events that is both truthful and unbiased and written for a much older audience.” Vader supposed that made sense. “This includes his knowledge of maths, problem solving, and personal works. What concerns me is that his deductive reasoning score is near perfect. He problem solving seems to be that of…a peculiar sort. Furthermore, he erased his answers on several questions more than once. As a policy we record every answer a student makes on the entrance exam.”

“What did this reveal?” 

“His first answers were always a little rough around the edges but far more sophisticated. It is clear that his later answer are…deliberately dumbed down or sabotaged completely. It appears that the young prince is an accomplished liar.” 

“Indeed.” Vader wondered what he could explain. 

“Do you know why he would change his answers so much or why he felt the need to lie on his exam?”

“Luke has a history he is uncomfortable with and has yet to share with me. While I am aware of it I do not know the details.” Vader lied. “Does this change his position?”

“No, I am curious about what this means though. He lied thoroughly on his exam but seemed so honest when I just spoke to him. I would recommend that he speak to one of our councilor’s at least to a councilor to begin with. Also, there are several things that he will need to ensure he knows before he comes. First, as much as we try to teach our students otherwise, many of our students have personal prejudices against others. This may affect Luke personally as I understand that he has been taught how to fight?”

“Yes.” 

“Please impress upon him the absolute necessity that he hold back if he should ever have the misfortune of getting into a fight. It has happened, as much as I wish it were not so.”

“I will speak to him.”

“Another thing,” the administrator said, pausing in their walk. “Luke will be another student, no more and no less. There will be no special privileges, no considerations taken for him. Whether or not you are the Imperial Prince is not my concern.”

“I would not expect any considerations.” Vade told her honestly, “I chose this school specifically for your reputation of your leadership and qualities.” 

“Hmph, you may also take a tour of the school if you wish though if you wish to register Luke for any particular classes outside regular curriculum you will need to speak to the registers office.” 

“Particular classes?”

“Ones that a student may wish to take, usually of a hobby or a specialty they might find interesting. There is a list outside the registers office of ones he may find interesting. I have other work to attend to so I am leaving. Classes start in three weeks. Good day, sir.” Vader watched her wander off, her lekku hanging near her knees and swaying as she walked. He had to admire her gumption and calm but he considered next to the PTA parents and the ever frustrating school board she had to deal with that he might be easier to deal with. 

He found Luke admiring a row of tools in one of the mechanics classrooms. By that time Vader had found the list of elective classes and had stolen a few copies of the holozine that had been published that morning. 

“Father! Look at all of this! Can you imagine that I’m going to be going to school here! Mom is going to be so excited!” Bright blue eyes beamed up at him from under a slowly lengthening fringe of blonde. His excitement was true at least. Vader wondered what else the administrator had noticed on Luke’s exam. 

“Indeed, she will be pleased. Come, we must return to the residence if we are to continue your flying lessons.” 

“Great!” Luke jumped to his feet and bounced alongside his father. “Boy, this is so cool! I get to go to a real school.” They passed by the administrator’s aide and Luke gave another wave, “Bye! See you soon!” The woman beamed and waved back. “Father, do you think Mom is going something about that article?”

“Most likely.” Vader said. 

#$#$#

“I don’t understand why you think I need a physical right now!” Editor of the Court Ladies holozine protested furiously as he was escorted firmly into one of the rooms. “Its only been a few months since my last check up!”

“This is for your insurance policy.” Said his aide, shrugging. “That’s all I was told. Since that article came out this morning it’s been…controversial and you know your insurance doesn’t cover death by Lord Vader. They just want to cover all of the bases.” 

“Hmph,” the man grumbled as he entered the room. The nurse at his side finally letting go of his arm. “If that pregnant shaak can’t stand a little insults then how the hells is she suriving her marriage?”

“Eh,” the aide shrugged and left him in the room. 

The editor stared around the room and frowned, “Hey, you’re not my usual doctor? Where is Dr. Haz?”

“Oh he’s out today on family leave.” The doctor at the sink didn’t turn, he rolled his eyes. 

“I don’t let women be my doctors. I don’t trust tailheads but I trust them a lot more than I trust women.” He winked at the twi’lek nurse who rolled his eyes. “And yo…” His words died on his lips as the doctor finally turned around, an enormous…thing…in her hands. “Oh.” 

“Mr. Gleed, thank you for coming in today. I am sure you had much more important things to do.” Lady Vader said cheerfully. Gleed swallowed hard. “Your physical is going to match your age and your habits which have been extensively documented. Nurse, please prep the patient for an enema.” 

“Yes, doctor!” The nurse beamed and Gleed nearly cried. 

Four hours later he was crying and begging. His accusation of torture was met with even more doctors coming into the room to see if Lady Vader was abusing her position and title. Not a single one of them was human. By the end of the hour he had a kel-dor, four twi’leks, a wookie, a togruta, and one human in the room. 

He was unable to complain for as little as he enjoyed his physical there had been no misdoings. The nurses and doctors had all been professional. They had discussed his weight and health with grave dignity. His erectile dysfunction with the blandness one usually found in oatmeal his potentially failing organs calmly. He had only suffered his dignity and his pride. After watching Lady Vader stand calmly to the side with her coworkers as he was forced to run two miles, on a paced treadmill, to get his heart rate, Gleed was seriously considering resigning. 

He didn’t so much as walk away from the most humiliating physical in his life; rather, he staggered. And went straight to his office to find that had had been fired from his position of Editors by a board of directors. He also found a dozen strippers all waiting to be paid, a few dozen edible arrangements that also needed to be paid for. Graffiti in on his speeder, and someone had rigged a holographic projector in front of his apartment to make it look like his door was gone and a wall had replaced it. 

#$#$#

Jifus whistled a cheerful tune as she entered the kitchen and removed her coat. “Deno! That smells wonderful! What are you making?”

“Ah, my lady.” Deno whirled around, “welcome back! I am making some very delicious hot root soup! It will be strong enough to clear the stuffed sinuses of a hutt!” 

“Excellent!” She did a graceful turn. “Is my husband here?”

“Aye, your husband and son are in the hanger for a flying lesson.” 

“Wonderful.” She spun out of sight and made her way down to the hanger. There, she dramatically ran across the room. “Spouse!” Vader looked up and, surprised, managed to catch as she skidded into his arms and pressed her hand to her head as she held a pose worthy of a soap opera leading lady. 

“Wife?”

“I have had a most excellent day!” She proclaimed, keeping her pose with ease that spoke of her past in dancing. “You have returned to my arms! I have succeeded in destroying an enemy of mine. My son is beautiful and kind and my cook is making hot root soup! What more could a doctor ask for?”

“I do not know but I asked for an explanation.” Vader said, still holding her half way upright. 

“Ha, Gleed is taken care of. Do not do anything drastic. Also, hot root soup is one of my favorites.” She winked up at him. “And I do like having you around.” 

“Indeed?” Vader said and with a swift motion hoisted Jifus properly into his arms. “Then we must discuss this new development.” 

“Mom? Father?” Vader turned and Jifus waved from his arm. Luke stared awkwardly at them. “Um…hi?” 

“Son,” she blew him a kiss, “how are you?”

“I…got into the academy.”

“Well done,” she applauded, “I realize this is your moment of triumph but your father and I do need to talk.” 

“Take all the time you need.” Luke said and vanished back into the hold of the ship. 

“Great,” Jifus turned, “I do have something important to discuss.”

“As do I.” Vader agreed, carrying her through the residence until they’d reached their office. He gallantly set her on the couch and she chuckled. “What is it you are concerned of?”

“My patient is dying and I need help. I’ve got less than eight months to come up with a workable cure for her. I may or not be having a mild panic attack.”

“What do you need?”

“Help. You know your navy and military better than anyone. I’m putting together a team. I need whoever is best on your ships.” Vader immediately turned to his personal medic. The medic the Emperor did not know about. “I need people who can help me figure this out.”

“As you wish.” 

“Alright, that’s all I wanted to ask, what did you need?”

Vader considered her carefully before reporting everything that administrator had told as well as the nightmare Luke had had that morning. Her face grew into a steady frown and she finally nodded. 

“That is odd. Why would Luke be lying on his exam? He was so worried about the results too.” 

“His excitement was genuine,” Vader reported, “I believe he may have been attempting to blend in, making himself less of a noticeable candidate.”

“It’s still odd.”

“Agreed.”

“Well, that we’ll have to look into later. What about his nightmare?”

“I am unsure.” Vader admitted. “We will have to speak to him.” 

“Right.” 

“What did you do to the editor?” 

“I should ask you that same thing. I heard he got fired and has been suffering some pretty nasty pranks since this morning.” 

Vader thought on the curious and deliberate absence of Agent Kallus since that morning and decided to play ignorant. “I am unsure, none of his suffering was my doing.”

“Oh well, he’s gone and out of our way. Next thing, ball gown and stupid party details.”

“I have it well in hand.” He did have it well in hand. He’d contacted the seamstress that had made most of Padme’s gowns. Surmising that if she was good enough to do her clothes then she could be well enough to do Jifus’. “You need not concern yourself over them.” 

The conversation delved into discussing Luke and how to best help him. Eventually though, Vader did as promised and told of all that he’d omitted from his letter. Jifus explained how Leia had reacted to her worsening illness and her own fears that she would lose another patient to the mystery illness.


	23. Conspiracy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Owen and Beru Lars remember their nephew. Gohan's plan is almost ready. A nightclub opens.

Owen Lars watched the leader of Tatooine, Kitster Banai, rise from his genuflection at the same time as the Sand People representative. His mouth was pressed in a hard line but he said nothing that might destroy the tentative peace talks. 

He glanced over to Beru who was holding her hunting rifle with as much ease as the Sand People were handling theirs. Her fellow riflemen were staged around the room with tactical precision. 

“Friends,” Kitster spoke and Owen glanced away from his wife. “For generations, the suns have watched the wars between my people and yours. Abuses and crimes rampant on both sides that were fueled by our common enemy. Our enemy is gone.” His voice was smooth and his face kindly but the masked face of the Sand Person was impassive. 

“What do you want?” The heavily accented basic was sudden enough that Owen jerked.

“Peace,” he interjected, Kitster turned to him and Owen took a fortifying breath. “Look, I don’t…the farmers and yours…we’ve been fighting. Stupid, just fighting and fighting for nothing. Just…stupid. My mother was murdered by yours, tortured to death. I don’t.” 

“The grave we passed on our way in?” Owen glared at the question and gave a jerky nod. 

“Shmi Skywalker was murdered for nothing.” He bit out, “my friends died rescuing her! My father lost his leg! How many others have you murdered?” Owen swallowed down his nerves as the Tuskens shifted ominously. “How many did my friends kill? How many were tortured to death in the town just for a laugh? It’s not…right. We’ve got a chance; the whole planet has a chance to be different and new.” The words rushed out, his nerves were fraying and he remembered every foul curse he’d hurled against them. Every tear he’d shed for his mother and father. “A real chance! I don’t want anyone to have to worry anymore! Not us, not you! 

The Tuskens shifted a bit and the leader nodded. “The desert does not always scar.”

“Tell that to Beggars Canyon.” He snapped and he knew he was making a fool of himself. 

“You do not like us.” The not-question didn’t surprise him. 

“Not really.” The other seemed to consider him. 

“Leader Kitster, was this this man’s plan?” 

“Ah…yes. Owen approached me with the idea of a formalized peace treaty.” 

“Why?” The question was meant for the farmer. Owen twisted his hands together and he turned around to the kitchen counter behind him to pull out a small model of a T-16. 

“This belonged to my nephew.” He said gruffly. “Gone four years now. He was a kind boy, he was loving and gentle and everything a desert kid can’t be. He cared about everything. One time I saw the kid cutting some varmints loose from their traps because they were hurting. As I see it, the best way to show that…that he mattered and we loved him is to do what he’d be proud of. This is it.”

“A memory of those gone is long remembered by us.” The Tusken nodded, “the desert erases and forgets, memories live in the sands and the winds and the stones. We want to live in peace. Do you think that will be possible?”

“Jabba’s dead, his castle gone, and the slave trade is being demolished. I sure never thought that would be possible. If that is then don’t you think we can do this? Doesn’t seem like much of a step considering the Hutts are already gone.” 

The tusken nodded, “we will read this treaty and consider the proposal. We thank you for your honesty.” Without another word, they were all gone. 

Owen let out the nervous breath he’d been holding as soon as they were gone, nearly slumping against the kitchen counter. “Beru,” he said weakly and she was at this side. 

“Owen,” she kissed his forehead, “you did so well!” 

“You saved me the embarrassment,” Kitster agreed, he hadn’t turned from the now empty spot he’d been facing. “Thank you, Owen.” 

“I still don’t like them.” He grumbled, leaning against his wife. “Not at all. Not after Mom.” 

“Owen.” Kitster turned finally and there was an annoyed expression of understanding and patience. “We.” 

“Only because Luke.” He exclaimed and he ignored the burn in his eyes. “And Mom wasn’t vengeful or hateful either. Only cause of them.” 

“Anakin once helped a Tusken escape certain enslavement.” Kitster said, “and death. He cared too. Much like his son would later. Anakin cared more than anyone when we were kids.” Owen and Beru looked at him. “He did.” 

“Maybe Anakin.” Owen sighed and fiddled with the T-16. “Excuse me.” Kitster muttered his apology and left as well. He left the kitchen and made his way toward the garage. There, he sat down on the little bench that Luke had once claimed as his own. It was short but sturdy, like everything on the farm, and had Luke’s initials cared on the underside. Owen had pretended he couldn’t see it when it’d happened. 

Luke. 

“I’m sorry, Mom.” Owen buried his head in his hands. “I’m so sorry Luke.” 

It had all started with Obi Wan Kenobi. The box of droid parts that Luke had gotten. From the mysterious absence of the Tuskens to the disappearance of Jabbas goons during the tax season. He hadn’t really questioned it, using it to his advantage that the old man felt responsible for them. Owen supposed his biggest mistake was assuming that Kenobi would listen to him. 

Luke was not supposed to be a Jedi. Luke wasn’t going to follow that idiot into the stars the same way his father had. Luke was supposed to be a moisture farmer, safe and...safe. Kenobi had already gotten Anakin killed. For the Luke to follow in the same was…it nearly killed him. 

“Owen?” Beru appeared at the entrance of the garage, her rifle stored and a familiar expression on her face.

“Beru.” He looked up and then away. 

“It’s almost the anniversary.” 

“I know.” He forced the painful words out. “Two weeks from today.” 

“Yes.” Beru sat beside him, nearly falling off the small stool. “Do you…do you want to have a burial ceremony this year?”

“I.” Owen swallowed painfully, “I don’t know. What do you think?”

“Four years is a long time but…Kenobi…seemed to want to keep him.” Her voice wavered. “Luke is probably still alive, still out there and learning all of the things we couldn’t teach him. Flying out there in the stars.” 

“Yeah.” Owen felt his heart ache. If Luke was alive and not captured by the Empire then there was no way he would ever want to come back. He wasn’t made for the farmers life but…. “he could still come back you know. To visit.” 

“He might.” Beru said, “we never buried Anakin no matter how many times we heard he was dead during the war. Not until…he told us that he was dead.” 

“Anakin would have never let his child be raised here.” Owen agreed and he clasped one of her hands carefully. For a moment he admired the calluses and the scars and the weather beaten skin before bringing it to his lips and kissing it. She blushed but didn’t draw her hand back. “I couldn’t…let’s not bury him. Please, not until we’re sure as the days are long.”

“Alright.” She agreed softly. “Owen…I do have some news. I…they’ve asked me to go off-world.”

“Off-world?” He blinked rapidly and almost stood. “What?”

“My riflemen. I’m not allowed to share a lot of details with you but…off-world. We’re going to be expanding.” 

“You’ve never been off-world.” Owen breathed, “what are you going to do?” 

“We have plans but I…I’m not leaving for another two weeks yet. Still, it looks like it’ll be a dangerous mission.” 

“Oh,” Owen swallowed nervously, “do you…need me to…what do you need?”

“Please don’t be angry.” 

“I’m not. I’d never be, you’re the best marksman on the planet. You’re the best and if you can go help people then go. I mean, I’m going to be here with my own stuff.” He waved at the room, “treaty and such. Never thought I’d be the one who would do it. Dad’s…probably not happy from wherever he is. He didn’t like them. I don’t. Go, no problem.” 

“I don’t want you to be lonely, Owen.” Beru said, “I’ve as the Darklighters if they’d spare Biggs and Cami said she’d come by to keep you company too. I didn’t want to leave but…there’s so much left to do and even if Tatooine is free of slavers there are many places that aren’t.”

“Right.” Owen swallowed nervously, “I just…I’ll miss you.”

“I’ll miss you too.” 

“People need you out there,” Owen said finally and he felt the sudden gripping terror that had bothered him when Anakin had left with the pretty off-world girl. “You’ll be careful, won’t you?”

“Always.” Beru kissed his hand and leaned against him. For a moment, they were silent. “Do you miss him?” 

“Always.” Owen sighed, “sometimes I turn around and expect him to just be there. Or just see him playing in here or just walk over the sand dunes. I keep expecting to see him. Sometimes I think…it might be better if he was dead too. The Empire, getting a hold of Anakin’s son. I don’t. I would prefer to have him dead than anything worse happening to him.” 

“I know it’s a long shot.” Beru said quietly, “but I’ll keep an eye out for him and Kitster said he had an agent who would be willing to look for him when they come back. That’ll make two of us.” 

“Dividing the galaxy between you?” He laughed a bit to hide his fear. It still sounded stale. 

“Yes.” 

“If you find Kenobi, then do us favor and break his legs.”

“We don’t even know if he’s alive.” Owen said quietly, not daring to think of the prospect of what that would mean for Luke. “I…four years Beru. He took him four years ago. Nothing. I mean, Mom didn’t get anything on Anakin until the day she died. He.” He buried his head in his hands and felt tears burn behind his eyes. Beru leaned against him and he felt her shoulders shake. 

If Luke was anywhere out there, they hoped he was safe and taken care of. 

#$#$3

Obi Wan Kenobi jerked awake and groaned as he felt the whole of the universe press down on his skull. 

“That’s a pretty big hangover.” He heard the ISB agent talking from somewhere near his shoulder. “I’m almost impressed.” 

“Drank this weeks and next weeks paycheck.” Dex grumbled. There was a distinct note of anger in his voice, one that had never been there before. 

“I’m surprised you didn’t drown in your vomit.” The agent laughed and Obi Wan whined furiously as his head ache worsened. “But, I’ll be nice.” He felt someone grabbing onto his arm and then pressing around his limb with curious fingers. Too tired and hungover to even feel alarm as a needle jabbed into him. “a saline IV. It’ll help you sober up faster than usual.” He peeled opened his and felt total despair at the sight. 

“What…” 

“You’re in planetary lock-up cause you tried to beat up my direct supervisor. Not that she didn’t deserve it but I had to arrest you and your boss here. He wasn’t too happy.”

“This is prime selling time, Ben.” Dex grumbled, “got to make a living somehow. Bail’s pretty expensive too, don’t think you won’t be paying for that.” 

What was wrong with Dex? He hadn’t cared much before what Obi Wan did. He’d helped him before the war and now…he sighed and glanced up at Banaka. Her young face was openly amused. 

“I love how stupid you were. It was hilarious, just…throwing a bottle at her. Hilarious.” 

“I don’t remember.”

“You were taking offense to the way she was talking to one of your co-workers. I didn’t notice but…haha. Funniest thing I’ve seen all week. Now, I’m going to go and let your boss yell at you.” Banaka was gone and Obi Wan looked at Dex nervously. 

“Have mercy.” He pleaded as Dex loomed over him.

“I’m cutting you off.” Dex said shortly. “You’re fired.”

“What?” Obi Wan floundered with genuine fear for a moment. “As my bartender. You’re going to be waiting tables. You touch the drink again and I’m kicking you out.”

“Dex.” 

“No. you’re my friend, Ben. I care about you. I’m not allowed to let you drown yourself and died in a puddle of your own mess. It’s disgusting, you’re killing yourself.” 

“I’m not.” 

“You’re not drinking again and if you do then it shows you just don’t care enough about our friendship. Ever since you crashed at my place you’ve been moping and whining and drunk. Well I’ve had enough. You’re responsible for yourself and that means you’re going sober.” 

“Dex.” Obi Wan felt his head clearing a bit. 

“You need to be looking for Luke! You need to be looking for him. Active, not just drowning yourself in my bar! Do you have any idea how much you’ve cost me? I’m under suspension for the next two weeks!” 

“I didn’t mean to.” Obi Wan said. 

“No, when I get back to the apartment I swear I’m going to toss out all those little stashes you think I don’t know about.” 

“I’m not a drunk.” He tired for and cut off as Dex smacked on of his meaty hands atop the other as his other two went to his hips. 

“You’re drying up tonight, Ben.” Dex said shortly and Obi Wan thumped his aching back onto the table. “I’m going home. I’ve paid bail for myself. When you’re sobered up a bit I’ll post yours.” 

“Fine.” Obi Wan snarled, “fine, leave me.” He turned onto his side, careful of the IV and closed his eyes. He waited for Dex to say something but his long-time friend just left quietly. 

$$%$5

“We’ve got a mission!” Gohan exclaimed as she flounced into the kitchen of their base. Ezra and Aphra looked up. “We’re not using Doora, she’s off having fun with Fett but we’re headed out We’re going to scam the Hutt clans out of all of their money.”

“How are we going to do that?” Ezra asked as he snitched a good chunk of Aphra’s donut. The archeologist didn’t seem to nice. “That seems a little difficult.” 

“We’re going,” she beamed hugely and presented a wide flag. It was brown and green and disgusting. “To convince them that they can form their own empire.” 

“Don’t they already have one?” Ezra asked.

“Yes, but we’re going to give them the biggest empire they could have dreamed of. Enough to challenge the Empire.” 

“Okay.” Ezra blinked, ‘is this the thing where we give our victims what they want the most and then take it away?”

“Exactly and Ez, you’re running the face of this one. I’ve recently bought a planet and it’s got people on it. I’ve made you the King.” 

“WHAT!” 

“Your palace and staff is everything is already set up. We’ve got a nice little sovereignty going. Don’t worry about fitting in, you’re already very well liked.” 

“WHAT?” 

“You’ll make a nice prince. Aphra,” Gohan winked at the dumbfounded human, “you’re going to be forging a kriff ton of documents. His birth certificate, coronation documents. Plus, a lot of historical documents for the planet. I’ve got it all sorted out here.” 

“I CAN’T BE A PRINCE!” Ezra shouted. Gohan ignored him. 

“Sure, you can! You’ll be find. You just have to seem stupid and malleable. I’m the one who’s going to be doing the real work. I’m your Grand Vizier by the way. Aphra, you’re a teacher at a university. It’s a new one so you’re automatically the head to the department.” 

Aphra choked on her caf. 

“Alright, we’re going to be taking this base off-line for now. We’re moving to a place called Zuden.” 

“You can’t throw this at us!” Shouted Ezra who was glancing at Aphra for support. “I don’t know how to be a prince! How do people even rule planets? What the hells?”

“The youngest Queen of Naboo was 12, a year younger than you. Alright, you’ll be fine and the real work is already handled. You’re the grifter! If you don’t know then pretend you do!” Gohan rolled her eyes, “honestly, why are you complaining?”

“Aphra,” Ezra yelped. The archeologist stared intently at her. 

“Do I get tenure?”

“You can’t be serious!” 

“No, you may need to be fired for drama purposes but accommodations are provided for and the whole school is pretty well funded.” Gohan seemed inordinately pleased with herself. 

“How long have you been working on this?” Aphra asked and the blue alien beamed. 

“Oh…just a few years. Ever since we took down Jabba the Hutt and you remember how much money we made on that job.” 

“I do.” 

“When this is over we’ll be so rich we won’t even know what to do with ourselves. We’ll probably keep stealing money. Now, we’re going to be working with a lot of other crews too while we do this. About two or three. The first one,” she held up a hand to stop any more of Ezra’s sputtering shock. “Is a bunch of smugglers out of Naboo. They’re a big group. Much bigger than we are. Second, the next is actually a government delegation from the Free People of Tatooine.”

“The what?” Ezra seemed to have lost his voice and he buried his head in his hands. Aphra looked curious.

“You remember how we got rid of Jabba? Well, apparently, in his absence, the whole slave population decided to get their planet back. No joke, they’re all free now. I’ve been working with their boss, newly elected leader and such, and he’s willing to help me take down the Hutts…for a percentage.” 

“How much of a percentage?” Aphra demanded and Gohan shrugged.

“Forty.” 

“That’s is highway robbery!” 

“They’re funding a slave rebellion!” Gohan waved her off. “And we’re going to be getting a steady income from the taxes on our new little planet and this is the Hutt fortunes were talking about. 60% is still an obscene amount of money.”

“I don’t even care about the money,” Ezra groaned, finally finding his voice, “how the hells are you going to pull this off?” 

“Team work,” Gohan said blandly, “and I’m not about to let three years of groundwork go to waste.”

“Alright.” Aphra said and Gohan’s smile widened. 

“Great! Here’s your roster and the things you need to teach. The university is the only one on the planet so enrollment is through the roof right now. The department is pretty small, only you and another professor.” 

“Is this person any good?” 

“I saved them from an Imp firing squad while they were.”

“Our last mission!” Ezra yelped, “two weeks ago we got a guy off of death row!” 

“Yeah, that’s him. As a favor he’s teaching here under a new name. Second, you’re actually going to need to teach. I may or may not have told everyone that you’d get them into better and bigger schools.” 

“Wow.” Aphra whistled, “I’m impressed. I don’t know why you continue to surprise me but you do.”

“Yeah, you should see tuition, it’s super cheap. I think even the Naboo crowd’ll be pleased. Now, Ezra, here is the history of the planet. The polling information, the GDP, everything you need to know. Also, a couple of books on how to rule a planet, a few on acting, royal behavior you may need to know.”

“Gohan!”

“Look, Ez, this is going to be the biggest job of the…eon. Okay? We do this we get more money than whatever deity you choose. You signed onto this crew, that means you do the job.” 

“But I can’t be a prince!” 

“Sure, you can, Ez. I’ll be right beside you the whole time anyway. In two weeks, we head out of this base. Zuden is a nice place. You’ll like the castle.” 

“The what?” Ezra looked pale and terrified but Gohan only shrugged.

“The castle. The one you’re going to be living in. You’ll like it.” 

“I’m going to lay down.” Ezra said faintly and took the chips that Gohan set on the table with an expression of befuddled amusement. “What?” 

“Study, for the next two weeks you’re going to be studying.” 

“Nooooo.” Ezra whined but conceded at her too-devious smile. “Fine, but I don’t like it.”

“Alright.” Gohan grinned at him, “later then, Ez. I have a meeting to get to. I’ll be back in a few days.” 

#$#$#

Queen Apindala watched, with great concern, as her handmaidens moved around the room with exactness that rivalled the Emperor’s red guards. It wasn’t often they felt this need or even faced this situation. 

Of course, she’d never hosted the two other of her cohorts in this room before. 

“Let them enter,” she declared and two doors opened on opposite sides of the room. From the door to the left walked a figure in black robes. His dark eyes and skin seemed deeply sad but still hopeful. He did not wear any significant jewelry, only a simple necklace of tan stone. Nothing about him seemed bowed or broken, the man walked with kingly assurance. 

“Kitster,” she smiled faintly and extended a hand, “thank you for coming such short notice.”

“It’s fine!” The cheerful, brash voice of the blue alien that sauntered from the other door was almost deafening in the near silence of the subterranean throne room. “It’s not like we weren’t very busy at all.”

“Excuse her,” Kitster said, his own smile was crinkling from his mouth up to his eyes and Apindala very much wanted him to keep smiling. It was warm enough to warm her hands over. “She means well.”

“I’m the one who’s been setting this all up,” the alien complained and waved lazily at her, “come on, queeny. Snacks?” 

“Certainly.” Apindala had never had the opportunity to meet the other girl before and was fascinated by the bright pink eye sand the deep blue skin. “Your name?” 

“Gohan, I’m your thief. Don’t worry about your throne, I won’t touch it.” 

“My throne?” A little charmed, Apindala leaned back. 

“Yeah, I’ve already got a puppet of my own on a throne I invented two years ago. More like three but who’s counting?”

“I am not,” Apindala gestured for the table to be brought and snacks to be served. “Please, take a seat.” 

“Alright,” Gohan and Kitster did so and they waited as the table was set with the usual speed of her servants. When it was done, she waved them all off, leaving on the trio of conspirators and the handmaidens. 

“My friends, we are at a crossroads.”

“We sure are.” Gohan ignored her tea and cookies and leaned across the table, “Kitster, where are you at?” 

“My riflemen and such are ready to go.” 

“My ships are already ready to take off as well.”

“Well, this stage is all of my job.” Gohan said, “all of it goes to me. We only get the Hutts if I do this right and your manpower is everything. I promise you, this will be a con for the ages.” 

“We have been successful until now. Jabba’s strangle hold on the planet is gone and his men are gone.” 

“The Empire is not at all focused on the outer rim since Black Sun was destroyed.” Apindala almost blushed as the thief winked a pink eye at her. “Thank you, Gohan.” 

“The biggest problem is keeping the Empire off our back right now. If they catch wind of what we’re doing we’ll be in big trouble. I know you’ve got contacts, queeny. Whoever is the big bad funder you’ve been using then you need to tell them to be willfully blind.”

“I will inform them.” 

 

“It is crucial they know nothing of our plan. The destruction of the Hutts has been in the works for three and a half years. Gohan, do you know if that new boy will work out?” 

“He’s good but since I lost my hitter and my original grifter I’ve changed up the plans a bit.” 

“What did happen to your original grifter?” Kitster wondered. 

“He got adopted,” at the disbelieving stares directed at her, she shrugged. “No joke, he ran into a some people who wanted to adopt him. I use my Net show to keep an eye on him an relay messages.”

“Love against Intelligence?” Apindala was blushing and Gohan nodded. “I…my handmaidens and I watch it.” 

“It is a terrible show but the ratings have actually gone up since I put that little Luke in there. He’s a really cutie and his actor is really good.”

“Anyway,” Apindala cut the conversation short, “we are going to be busy. With this stage of the planning I have to report that the ships we’ve commissioned are almost ready.” 

“What about the rebel alliance?” Asked Gohan, “they have been getting bolder in the absence of Jabba and Xixor.” 

“They shouldn’t pay much attention to us,” Kitster said, “it is their habit.” 

“First step, keep the Empire off our back. Second, make sure the Rebels don’t get in the way. Third, when my extra guys make it to Zuden we already have everything set up. I’ve spent the last few years prepping for the next few weeks. This’ll be solid.”

“I do not know how some of my people are going to react to giving the Hutts what they want, for even a short time.” 

“That won’t be a problem, I’m giving everyone the DL when they get there. Here’s the kicker, we can’t stop our other raids against the Hutt. They need to be between a pit and a beast. Queen, keep your peoples out and about causing trouble. Kitster, this is very important….give ‘em hells. We need to make sure that the only place they can turn to is us.” 

“What about the Empire?” 

“Because of this little con we’re pulling, they aren’t going to the Empire for help. This is too damning even for them.” 

“I am ever impressed with your wicked schemes,” Apindala smiled at Gohan who almost, but no quite, blushed. “Thank you for your efforts for a free galaxy, Gohan.” 

“Ah,” she said, not really selling her nonchalance, “I’m just in it for the money.” 

%#$#$

Agent Tove surveyed the swaying, bouncing horde on the dance floor with almost a grin. The floor was full of people trying out new acrobatic dance moves, cheerful couples that one wouldn’t expect in a dance club like this, a good number of lazy drunks happy to sway in a single spot in time to the music. 

The tables and the bar were full. A lot of people were drinking and a lot of people were just enjoying the food. 

Opening night was going well. 

“What kind of music is this?” Tove turned to see a confused patron staring at the band stage with an expression of supreme befuddlement. 

“I’m not sure. It isn’t jizz or classical or anything else.” Tove shrugged, “I saw these guys practicing in one of the open domes. They’re good and they’ve sure got the place bouncing.” 

“I’m liking it?” The rodian frowned, “I do not normally like human music. How do you dance to it?” 

“Not sure,” Tove grinned at the experimental dancing going on. “It looks like people are figuring that out.” 

“Huh, I’m going to go dance.” The patron wandered onto the dance floor and also got in on the mixing fun of testing what kind of moves when to the new music. 

There were a million uses for a night club. Information, money, black-mailing, illegal betting, and arms dealing. 

“You the boss around here?” An ugly human man was standing no too far and looking severely out of place. 

“Yep!” She beamed a nasty smile and he glared. 

“Great, wanna talk business?” 

“Sure do!” She slapped a hand on his back and led him to the back room, choosing to reserve her actual offices for people she wanted to work with. People that were not slavers.


	24. Designs and disasters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There's a problem with a dress. Professional distance is needed.

“This is unacceptable.” The seamstress, a little aged and a lot more tired, cringed back into her office chair as Vader set her designs back onto her desk. “None of this is suitable for my wife’s age and shape.”

“I’m sorry, Lord Vader. I’m sure that if I had more time.” 

“No,” he held up a hand and attempted to control his ire, “did you even consider the difference in shape? None of this is flattering. Are you incapable of designing something that is not for a rail thin debutant?” 

“I am sure that I could.” The woman looked for an excuse, “there is simply no…demand for such…” her voice trailed off as the temperature of the room plummeted. “Lord Vader,” she rushed out, “it’s not a very common size in the Imperial Courts. I specialize in gowns for the Imperial court.” 

“You created nearly all of the ball-gowns for Senator Amidala,” He snapped. She flinched and leaned back. Finally showing a scrap of genuine emotion. 

“Well, Senator Amidala could have managed to make a shapeless poncho look fantastic.” She looked toward a wall of holos full of beautiful women in beautiful gowns. He didn’t see Padme but that didn’t mean that she might not have been up there at some point. “I mean no disrespect for Lady Vader, who I am sure has a lovely personality but I simply can’t design.” 

“Details of your incompetence do not interest me,” he snarled. She flinched away as he stomped from the room in high dudgeon. 

They were inadequate designs. Too tight, too loose, to shapeless. All of them failing too much. Vader sat in the seat of his speeder, trying to contain his temper.

“Milord.” He looked to the right. Technically he was supposed to be a passenger in the speeder, sitting in the back while he was flown around. He was not one for this rule. His pilot was usually relegated to the front passenger seat as he took the pilot controls. “Erm, there are still several design studios in the Capital Grid. Several of them very reputable.” 

“She was reputable.” He said, “and her failings were obvious.” 

“Yes, sir.” The pilot squirmed a bit. “If you don’t wish to examine the other offices then the School of Design has open studios for students to display their work. You may find something there.” 

“Indeed.” Vader tapped out an annoyed beat on the console. “We shall continue to search.” He said. 

#$#$3 

The most useful part about the younger generation was the fact that anything interesting could be documented and published for nothing. It was also extremely irritating and had been the cause of the top being blown off several cases of authority abuse. Random bystanders were holo-cams were exceedingly frustrating to Isard. 

“Sir.” Ysanne Isard tilted her head to the side to indicate the man should speak, not breaking her focus on her current project. “You wished to be notified of significant activity of one of our persons of interest.” 

“What is it?” Her cool tone had the holoscreen across the room lighting up with dozens of different social media postings. Most of them pertaining to one person. All of them, once she got a better look. 

@tommi [@rancorlover. Dude! Look who just stormed out of @designsandgowns ] 

A well-framed and lit picture of Darth Vader looming over a tired looking pilot aide was beside the post. The faces in the background were all in focus, showing differing expressions of shock, terror, and humor. 

@rancorlover [@designsandgowns. What did you do? He sounded pissed!]

@tommi [@rancorlover. I think I hear crying from the inside! Haha!]

@rancorlover [@tommi. I’m not surprised. Gods, that guy just oozes scary.]

@tommi [@rancorlover. Would you rather fistfight a rancor or have a five minute conversation with @officaldarthvader?]

There was a poll that @tommi had set up. Out of the 33,334 people who took the poll 97% chose to fistfight the rancor. The other 3% of those who responded all replied with comments varying around the idea that he was married and had adopted a son. 

Isard blinked. The conversation was nearly identical from blocks and grids across the Imperial capital. Some of them posted pictures of Darth Vader looming in front of various designers and shop assistants. Some of them Isard even recognized. They were all extremely famous and rich. She even owned some of their designs. 

“How many designers did he visit today?” 

“23, ma’am.”

“How many social media posts have there been regarding this?”

“Several thousand and climbing. It’s reaching the online holo-zins and the other Net shows that mostly report on interesting social media sites. Multiple shows have picked this up for the evening broadcast.” He shifted uncomfortably.

“Do we know why he’s going from designer to designer?” She asked, wondering what Darth Vader of all people wanted with idiots who spent their days drowning in fabric and needles. 

“No, ma’am. Not yet.” 

“Has anyone asked him?” She demanded and the man cringed. He pulled out his datapad and typed quickly. 

@fancyhat [@officaldarthvader. Why all the designers?] 

Isard watched the post pop onto her screen and she raised a dark eyebrow at him. He shrugged and they both stared and waited. Neither was surprised there was no reply. Darth Vader had never posted on any of the social media sites even if he claimed the official handle for his name. 

“Find out what he wanted with all of those designers.” She ordered. Neither of them could have guessed that variations of their conversation was being carried out in the various spy agencies, media sites, high ranked officials who made snooping their business and the by the Emperor and his favorite spy.

#$#$# 

Dr. Ayden had been setting a patient sample onto the bottom tray of his cart when he was aware of a new and unusual presence. He glanced though the levels of the cart to see a pair of dark green scrubs and scuffed shoes. Very cautiously, stretching out to feel for any animosity, he stood. 

There wasn’t animosity but he did blink to see Lady Vader standing across his cart. 

“Doctor.” She said.

“Doctor,” he replied, “is there something I can do for you?” 

“Several somethings. A lot of somethings. I’m thinking thinky thoughts and I need some help. I’ve sent out a call for several people who can help in all of these thinky thoughts. Interested?” 

“I…have no idea what you just said, milady.” 

“That’s fair,” she shrugged. “I’m sure you’ve heard about Patient Zero?”

The princess. “Yes, ma’am.” 

“Good, well. I’m putting together a team of braining people who can.” She looked away and then back, “I’ve had about four hours of sleep total in the last few days. Don’t get confused, okay?” 

“Yes, ma’am.” Idly he wondered what her marriage was like. “Do you need my assistance?” 

“Yes, lots of yesses. Come with me if you can dump your work on someone else. If not then I’ll wait.” 

“I get off shift in an hour, milady.” He said, mostly unwilling to put all of his patients on another overworked doctor. “Shall I meet you somewhere?”

“Yeah, where’s your on-call room?” She requested and Ayden pointed wordlessly down the hall. She nodded agreeably and wandered off. Her expression the perfect combination of pleased exhaustion. When Lady Vader was gone he turned to look at his son. 

“Well?” 

“Father!” He hissed and joined him at the cart, setting his own patient samples on it, “that was Lady Vader!” 

“I’m aware, young man.” 

“Wow.” His son looked at the space the woman had vanished and then back at him. “Father, have you read any of her papers? She’s got a few really fantastic ones. Did you know she’s the one who invented the Per Method?” 

“The Per Method has been around over a decade and a half, just about.” Dr. Vax said and his son nodded. 

“Yes. The thing is is that the MASH unit she was serving in was being bombed and they had a really pregnant rodian who was injured in one of the battles.” 

“Son, you are one your rotation.” Ayden rubbed his forehead, “this is not a time for teenaged gossip.” 

“But her partner at the time was my professor in emergency surgery!” Ayden raised an eyebrow and waited. “So what happened was that they came up with the Per Method on the fly. He said the doctor just dove in with a knife and prayer. You know that the rib structure and the anatomy of a Rodian make’s C-sections near impossible. So,” his son bounced up and down on the balls of his feet. “She just invented it! Well, Professor Per helped too.” 

“Son,” Ayden set a gentle hand on his sons shoulder, “focus. Alright?” 

“Yes, sir!” His son laughed and wheeled the cart away. Ayden shook his head and watched his son vanish before turning in the direction of his patients. 

#$#$#$3

Technically Luke wasn’t a part of a thieving gang anymore. He didn’t need to keep tabs on the various schemes he was considering and he didn’t need to keep an eye on the news. 

He still did. 

A habit ingrained by Gohan’s never-ending paranoia and his own focused need to understand what was going on at all times. Luke had hacked the datapad his father had given him. He set up program to scan social media sites, the ISB database, CorSec databases, the Assassins and Bountyhunter’s Guild, and a few more organizations. 

For the first few hours of the excited pinging on his datapad Luke ignored them all. He focused mostly on trying to set up a fanfiction account and then to make a handle he knew Gohan would recognize. He didn’t enjoy Love Against Intelligence as much as his mother but if Gohan was pulling production strings then he’d need to watch every episode. 

He settled on FarmBoyBlond, something Gohan would think was hilarious. The accounted was opened with little to no trouble. He made sure the security was up to par and discovered, to his surprise, the encryption was actually better than some sector banks. He figured it had to be because of the shocking amount of high ranking society people and politicians the read and wrote fanfiction. Large amounts of it easily qualified as porn, which he avoided. 

It wasn’t until the pinging got annoying did he do anything. 

The first thing that came to mind as he scanned the signs and the posts was that his father was up to something. There were various pictures of his father standing in front of different boutiques and offices; looking hilariously out of place. Sometimes surrounded by nervous people and sometimes alone. Luke rubbed his eyes and began parsing through the information as quickly as he could manage. 

“Luke,” he looked up and closed his search programs down as Niles stepped into the room, “young lord.” He bowed and Luke smiled. 

“Hi, Niles. Do you need something?” 

“Did you have any plans today?” Niles asked. Luke frowned. He was feeling pretty restless and he wanted to have some space to do something besides study and hang out in his room. 

“Um, did you?”

“I’m going shopping this afternoon. Would you like to come with me?” 

“Shopping! What kind of shopping?” Luke was already off his bed, packing up his new messenger bag and supplies he thought he might need. 

“Grocery, as well as whatever may catch my fancy.” 

“I’m coming. I need to see more of the planet.” That wasn’t putting him at risk of getting in trouble with his parents. Luke packed and followed the rail thin man from the residence and onto one of the discreet speeders the stuff usually used when going out. “Where are we going?” 

“We’re going to park in the lower level and go shopping where your mother likes the food the best.” Niles said, “I’ve found the usual dishes I’ve served to the ladies I’ve worked for are not in her favor.”

“I don’t know how fancy people eat.” Luke said as the butler parked the speeder. “I like what you make Mom, she likes it too.” 

“She does.” Luke felt his datapad vibrate. He wanted to check to see if his father had shaken down a new designer yet. 

The undercity sections of the Imperial Center were bright and cheerful and exciting in a way nothing on the upper levels weren’t. The clothes were brighter, many more colors around on many more species. There was less of any attempt to copy the fashion of the elite above them. 

Luke adored places like this, loud and noisy and crazy with people every where and noise from every angle and he could smell some of the best food the galaxy had to offer. He took a few steps forward and squawked as he was pulled gently back.

“Please don’t run off.” Niles asked, “this is a very dangerous place to be.’ 

“You have no faith in me.” Luke grumbled, thinking of the times he’d sauntered straight into the bars and brothels and the Imperial Senate. “Come on! I was trained for this!” 

“You were trained for war, young sir.” Niles disagreed, “not for shopping.” 

“That’s what you think.” Luke strained against the hand holding him back. “Come on! I just want to see the market!” 

“Not yet,” Niles guided him into the edge of the market grid. It was packed with aliens and humans. Luke could see hundreds of people from his vantage point. “When we’re a little closer to being done but not yet. I don’t want to be the one who lost you.” 

“I’m 13,” Luke pointed out as he more or less agreeably followed Niles, “not 11. Heck, I know an eleven year old who could navigate this place way better than you.” 

“Luke.” Niles sighed as he stepped to the side for a hulking wookie. 

“I’m being serious. Us outer rim street rats know the in and outs of markets better than you.” Luke beamed at the butler who shrugged. 

“Probably but this is the Imperial Center.” 

“If that makes a difference then you’re not realizing the criminals are pretty much the same everywhere.” 

“I am deeply concerned that you know this.” 

“Not everyone gets the luxury of ignorance.” Luke pointed out and Niles looked, if possible, even more pained than before. 

“Quite right, young lord. Quite right.” 

#$#$#$#

Ayden Vax prodded Lady Vader awake. Or, he tried to. She was an unresponsive lump on the cot, her lab coat pulled over herself like a blanket.

“Is she awake?” His son leaned over his shoulder and Ayden waved him off.

“no, she is totally unresponsive.” 

“Is she dead?”

“No, only sleeping I think.” 

“Excellent.” His son leaned around him again and shouted, “DOCTOR! YOUR PATIENT NEEDS YOU!” Ayden swore under his breath as his ears rang and then as Lady Vader launched herself off the cot and in the direction of the door. She collided with Ayden and his son, sending them all to the floor. 

“What’s wrong?” She barked, clambering off the doctor as quickly as she could and standing upright. All traces of sleep were gone, her gray eyes were bright and focused. 

“Nothing,” his son grumbled as he stood as well, trying to massage his chest, “we just couldn’t wake you up.” 

“You woke me up by telling me my patient was in danger?” She demanded and Dr. Vax winced. “Do that again and I will feed you your shoes.” 

“Yes, ma’am.” His son waved awkwardly as Lady Vader reached down and yanked Dr. Vax to his feet. 

“You ready?” She demanded and Ayden nodded. “Great, we’re going to my hospital. This kid can handle whatever you need him to here.” 

“Well, ma’am, he’s still learning.” He glanced back at his son as he was hauled, more or less willingly, from the room. 

“He’ll learn faster.” She said, “come on.” 

343434

Senator Organa was the only person in the room beside the princess. He was seated on one of the too-small chairs as putting together the last of the puzzle the doctor had left in here on her last visit. He didn’t bother standing or turning when they entered. 

“Senator,” she waved, “Princess, how do you feel?” 

“I feel fine.” Leia was bunched up into a small, aggressively annoyed ball with her back turned to the door. She didn’t look around. “Go away.” 

“Excellent,” still holding onto Vax, she gestured to the senator, “I’m going to borrow you’re father right now.” 

“Fine.” Leia snapped. Bail looked at his daughter, startled and fearful as he reluctantly walked from the room. When they were encorcelled in her office, he visibly dropped. 

“She’s not doing any better.” He glanced at Dr. Vax, “hello.”

“Senator, this is Dr. Ayden Vax. He’s very good at his job. Because of this he’s going to take over, with your agreement, primary care of Leia.” 

“Are you no longer capable?” Bail asked and she shook her head. 

“Tomorrow several associates and partners I’ve worked with before are going to be coming to Imperial Center.” His dark face tightened, “we’re all going to be putting our complete effort into helping your daughter. I’m talking the best of the best from around the galaxy.” 

“That is a lot of effort to put in for one child.” The senator sighed, “even mine.” 

“Senator, this is not just for Leia. This is for the galaxy as a whole. If this is contagious in a way we’ve never seen before or if there are those who are more at risk then we need to know. Also, yes, this is for the Princess. Vax is not only going to monitoring her health and following my instructions but he’s also going to be emotional support.” 

“I’m not sure.” The senator wrung his hands and stared at the silent Vax. “Doctor, it is not that I don’t trust your judgement but exposing Leia to ever changing staff. It may not be good for her.” 

“Senator, if I could run this collaboration and personally take care of the princes then trust that I would do it. But I’ve tried that stick before and it has backfired in ways I don’t think anyone saw coming. Either the patient or the potential cure suffer immensely.” She tapped Ayden’s shoulder and he smiled. “I went through a lot of names before settling on him.” 

“Senator,” Ayden spoke up, “I am experienced and I have children of my own. I have the skills to take very good care of the princess.” 

“I’m going to explain this to Leia and I want for all three of you to spend some time together. Without me.” 

“Doctor,” the senator took the offered hand and glanced between the two doctors. “Please don’t be offended by my cation. I take my daughter’s health as my most sacred duty.” 

“I understand, Senator Organa,” Dr. Vax said, “were I in the same position I would do the very same.” The two men seized each other up while Lady Vader hustled around her desk and began to mutter to herself. “How do you prefer for me to introduce myself?” 

“I would like for you to understand that Leia is a planetary princess.” Organa said firmly, his gimlet gaze not lessening. “She is heir to my wife’s throne and is not to be treated as anything less.” 

“Senator.” 

“Don’t be stupid, Organa.” Bail turned, glowering and Dr. Vax glanced at the ceiling as if it would offer him respite from the woman’s more obnoxious habits. Dr. Vader jumped up from behind her desk and set a small device on it. 

“Excuse me?” 

“Your daughter is all that but you need to remember she feckin’ thirteen. Part of her problem is being completely absorbed in that title and not being a 13-year-old with a, so fun, incurable disease. You think she’s unhappy now? Senator, she’s unable to look past her title. She’s looking at you, her people, her planet which is all well and good and fantastic but she’s not working on looking at herself. She’s a child. A very scared child. You let her know she’s not long for this universe if I’m not successful. Which was a dumb move in my opinion but she’s your daughter.” 

“Lady Vader.” 

“Doctor Piett,” she tucked her hands into her pocket and levelled a stare at the senator. “I am not my husband but I am a doctor who has seen this play out a hundred different ways across the galaxy. You’re going to trust my judgement and you’re going to listen to me that if Dr. Vax handles Leia as if she’s only a princess and that’s all there is to her then she’s going to feel worse and worse.” 

“Then bring on a psychologist,” Bail stiffened under the glare. 

“No,” Jifus waved at Ayden, “though he does have a minor degree in psychology for long-term patients. Look, I get it. You don’t trust the obviously Imperial or Imperial related people. Ayden is technically in the Corps and my husband eats small planets for breakfast. But get this, we’re doctors first. I’ve betrayed more governments and officers than you can shake of stick at but I am not an oathbreaker. I took the oath of a doctor and it has been the guiding line for my life since then. Dr. Vax has several cases of insubordination for upholding his oath. We do not betray patients for any reason.” 

“Doctor Piett,” the senator stared at them, “I am concerned.” 

“Senator.” Jifus took a seat on the edge of her desk and nodded to the door. “You’re an old Jedi sympathizer, easy to see and history vindicates me.” Ayden looked curiously strained at the proclamation. “I’ve looked Jedi masters and padawans in the face and lied to them, successfully, to keep my patient’s safe and to keep my oath. If you think I can’t and won’t do that same now, 13 years later, I’m insulted.” 

The senator sighed deeply, “she’s my daughter. I must,” he shivered, “she is the very love of my life. She is the most precious thing to me. Ever. My wife and I were unable to have children of our own.” He glanced to Ayden, “when we adopted Leia it was as if the sky had cleared for the first time in our lives together. To lose her now, to this disease is simply...unbearable.” 

“Perhaps you need to speak to someone, and you will. Dr. Vax is going to be both of your councilors.” 

“Yes,” Dr. Vax straightened finally to join the conversation. “I have helped many through this same situation.” Senator Organa looked unyielding and firm and nervous. Jifus rolled her eyes but said nothing as the man finally held out a hand. 

“Thank you, doctor. Perhaps it is time I introduce you to my daughter.” 

“Of course,” Dr. Ayden said and Jifus waved at them both. 

“Field trip!” She pushed both men from her office and toward the patient ward, keeping her grin firmly affixed her face. “Leia! I have a present for you!” She pushed them into the room as Leia finally turned around. 

“What do you need, doctor?” Her brown eyes were rimmed with red her cheeks were marked with tears. 

“I got you a present! First, let me present your new primary caretaker. Dr. Ayden Vax, he’s going to be helping you and keeping you company!” 

“Where are you going?” Leia sat up, looking from the doctors and then to her father. 

“Well,” Jifus sat on her bed and handed over the small black device, “I’m putting together and team and we’re going to be putting our whole attention on figuring out how to help you. Because I don’t want you lonely I’ve found a very good doctor who can take over for me here.” 

“But,” Leia shuffled under her blankets, “I want you.” 

“I want to stay too,” Jifus sighed and ran a hand over her dark hair, “but I know that I can help you more if I go work my teammates.” 

“Oh.” She leaned back against her pillows and nodded. “But, will you come visit me sometimes?” 

“Absolutely,” she waved Dr. Vax forward, “but let me introduce you. Dr. Vax, this is Leia Organa. Leia, this is Dr. Ayden Vax.” 

“It is a pleasure to meet you, Miss Organa.” He took her small hand and bowed over it. 

“It’s nice to meet you too, doctor. Erm, have you met my father?” 

“I have.” 

“So,” Leia twiddled her thumbs, “what?” 

“You’re all going to be working to put together a puzzle.” Jifus pointed to the unopened puzzle on the table. “Team building excise. Feel free to interrogate the doctor for answers. He’ll be happy to oblige.” 

“Of course I will.” Ayden agreed as Leia scrambled from the bed and over to the entertainment table. “Milady, are you not staying?” Jifus paused at the door. 

“Goodbye all,” she waved flamboyantly at the three, “Leia, plug that nifty toy into your datapad and see what it gets you. Senator, the wide pieces are the best place to start work from. Dr. Vax, have fun!” She waved at them and whirled from the room. 

#$#$#

Vader’s annoyance at the lack of possible designs for his wife to wear came to a boiling point as he exited the last design studio for the day. His patience, what little there was, gone and buried. His temper too short for this endeavor, snapped. 

“They are all useless,” he decreed to his pilot. The man waved a piece of flimsi in front of his face, looking exhausted. 

“Yes, Lord Vader.”

“I will have to try off-planet.” 

“Yes, Lord Vader.” He glanced over at the pilot and sighed to himself. With a quick motion he started the speeder and sent it into the choking traffic of Imperial Center. Halfway back to his residence the pilot fell asleep. 

When he landed in his personal hanger, he sensed both his wife and his son were gone. Niles too. The only living person in the residence was Deno who was drinking caf and watching a swoop race on the holo. 

“Deno!” He barked and the twi’lek jumped to his feet. 

“Sir!” he switched the holo off and then stared at the pilot behind the Sith. 

“Feed him and ensure he is returned from whence he came.” Vader ordered and stormed from the kitchen and toward his own office. The pilot staggered to take a seat the kitchen work table and stared at the cook. 

“Busy day?” Deno asked as he began fishing out food from the preservation boxes. 

“Busy as hells.” The pilot set his head on his arms and then began laughing semi-hysterically. “He went into a million design studios and all of them failed him. I don’t know what he’s looking for but, stars, I was dragged all across the damned city. I wasn’t even flying or talking to anyone and I feel half-dead already.” 

“That’ll be your blood sugar.” Deno said, “too low. You probably should have eaten earlier.” 

“I had breakfast and caf but I still feel bad.” The man finally sat up and peered at the food in front of him. “Marry me.” 

“No, I’ve got my own commitments but I’m flattered I could get you to propose before you’ve even tasted it.” Deno laughed.

“It smells divine.” The pilot sighed and pulled the plate closer to himself. “I sure hope he solves whatever puzzle he needs to solve. I don’t want to be caught in the cross-hairs of his temper.” 

#$#$#$#

Tove was halfway through seducing a staggeringly beautiful togruta when her comm beeped at her. She froze, staring at the collarbone of her evening’s guest and cursed.

“What is it?” The togruta asked.

“My employer.” Tove bit out and she moved away from her guest. “I’m sorry, we’ll have to do this later.” 

“I’m in town for a while.” She was handed a business card, “don’t let my kids know.” 

“Course, no one wants to admit to seducing an old human like me.” 

“Please,” the woman winked at Tove, “I happen to enjoy wrinkles.” 

“Ugh.” Tove rolled her eyes as Mii rolled off the couch and began to rebutton her shirt. “I do have lots of wrinkles.” 

“My species does not age to gracelessly as humans. It is very hard to find a partner that looks their age which is honestly a preference for most of us. So,” she ran a hand down Tove’s arm, “do not be embarrassed. It shows your work and your life.” 

“That makes me feel a little better.” Tove winked, “I’m going to go now. Are you coming in tomorrow?” 

“It depends if I can flirt a free drink out of the manager.” 

“You can.” 

“Then I’ll be here. My kids are going to be out anyway.” Tove winked as the togruta sashayed from the room. She turned to her holo and flicked it on. The symbol of Gentleman appeared and she raised a brow. 

“Boss.” 

“Tove, this is a matter of urgency. Set up a design and clothing corporation. Backdate the formation by a year. Open an office on the main Imperial Grid and have it ready for business in four days.”

“I.” Tove clutched at what remained of her hair and stared at the screen. “Erm…boss? 

“Have the main designer set up as Gentleman. I will have Kallus search for the employees that the store will need here.” 

“That’s a good amount of paperwork forgery.” Tove finally said, “what do you want it to be called?”

“The name is up to you. Simply have the space prepared.” 

“Aye,” Tove mourned the absence of Mii. “Anything else?” 

“How goes the club?”

“Very well. Super well. Money is rolling in. We have a lot of very happy guests. We’ve been scouted by a good number of the rich and famous on the planet. A few gangs have looked into taking us over. None of them have succeeded and I’m very sorry to inform you that your gang no long simply consists of ISB agents. On the other hand you are a very popular gang leader. Very fair and you pay very well.” There was a surprised silence.

“Tove.” 

“It was let the gangs keep hammering on the door or take some of them over.” Tove shrugged, glad she wasn’t seen. “It has done wonders for our supplies and guests are coming from all over.” 

“How many?” 

“Five.” 

“How much space is that?” 

“Erm,” she drummed her fingers against the holo-table. “about five hundred square miles. I swear I didn’t mean to start a gang for you.” 

“Tove,” he sounded tired, “what is this gang like?” 

“Well funded.” She said, “um, lots of donations to local schools and community projects as well as an organized protection racket.” 

“Protection racket?” 

“I promise it is very nice. For those that can pay, they get their money’s worth. Most of the violent gang members are very dead.” 

“Set up the studio,” Vader ordered, “keep an eye out for any rebels that may come into the club. If they do, make contact with them and indicate that Gentleman may have rebel sympathies.” 

“Yes, sir?” She stared at the floating image as it cut off and rolled her eyes. “Fick, I’ve got so much to do in a few days. I hate my boss!” 

#$#$#4

Agent Kallus was elbow deep in moisture vaporator parts when his comm rang. He leaned his ear into his elbow to accept the call. 

“Kallus, here.” 

“Kallus,” he jerked in his seat and stared at the little piece in his hands. “Tove will shortly be contacting you with the information of an opening design studio. You will be responsible for staffing the office.”

“An office?” He asked and stuffed another piece into his bag. 

“You will need a receptionist, several tailors and seamstresses. Tove will send the particular details. I would suggest that you look for staff at one of the design universities. I will not accept that staff that is inadequate or stupid. Do not,” Vader’s voice cooled dangerously. “chose only humans. If they are not qualified then hire any species that may be available. I recognize your history of prejudice, Kallus, ensure that this is not continued.”

“Aye.” He didn’t think he was particularly xenophobic but he would make the necessary promises to keep Vader from snarling at him. 

“You have four days.” Vader said shortly and cut off his train of thought. A moment later he was left in total silence again. He frowned at the pile of junk in front of him and cursed his commander and Tove. 

#$#$#4

Vader spent the entire evening hunched of his datapad. Not the work of his fleet or even the incoming paperwork and resumes from his ISB agents.

He downloaded a simple drawing program for his datapad and spent the evening trying to design something his wife could wear to the ball. 

“I heard someone had a busy day.” Jifus sauntered into their office with a grin and her hands stuffed into her pockets. “I didn’t even notice until nearly everyone I saw on my way home asked me what you were doing at the about a million different design studios. What’s going on?” 

“The inadequacies of the clothing industries have never been more apparent.” He said simply, closing down his datapad and looking up at Jifus. 

“How many people did you kill today?” 

“It may shock you,” Vader said, “but I do not kill for uselessness. I kill with intent and purpose. No one was killed.” 

“How many people did you hospitalize?”

“Four.” 

“I guess that’s better than a body bag,” she sighed and leaned against the door. “Should I worry about today’s expedition?” 

“No. It is being handled.” 

“Alright.” She stared, “aren’t you going to ask me about my day?” Vader froze. He stared at the painting she’d presented to him the day of their wedding. 

He was supposed to be a Sith. He was supposed to rule the galaxy with terror and bend before his master. He was a traitor and an enemy to all. He was angry and hateful and nothing. He was supposed to be nothing. 

He was married. He had a son. 

He wondered if Vader even encompassed who he was anymore. 

“Jifus,” he forced himself to look at the woman, “how was your day?” 

“If it pained you to ask you don’t have to.” She said and Vader had the sensation of vertigo. Of standing at the edge of nothing and wondering if he ought to jump over. 

“Was is productive?” he asked and Jifus raised a gray eyebrow. 

“Yes, also. I stole your Ayden Vax. He’s smart and I think the princess likes him. My chosen team are all getting on planet in the next day or so. So I’ll be busy.” 

“Fair.” He tried to uncurl the uncomfortable sensation weighing on him. “Do you know where Luke is?” 

“He’s back. He went shopping with Niles apparently. Saw him heckling the man’s haggling skills. I hope you know we’re raising a little miser.” Vader found himself both believing and disbelieving of that statement. “I’m going to decompress. Join us for dinner?” 

“If work will allow it.” He said and Jifus shrugged. 

“Fair enough,” she wandered from the office, whistling under her breath.

$#$#$# 

It wasn’t until two days later that Tove was successful in her latest assignment.

Vato Studios. Legally binding, taxes paid up, in the black since opening day. Perfectly legal employees No shows yet though.

Vader looked at list of employees and their various skills and had to admit that Kallus had done well. Today was their first day in the office and Gentleman would need to put on an appearance. 

He sent the digital designs to his brand-new employees and found another notification waiting the moment it was done. 

Tove, in all of her manipulation and apparent insanity, had set him up to be presenting an entire line of clothes in a month. He gritted his teeth and nearly bashed his head against the table. 

An entire line of clothes would take too much work for himself alone. On top of his already piling naval duties. 

He would wring Tove’s scrawny neck without a single regret. 

“Lord Vader.” Niles bowed himself into the room, “you have a call from Senator Tyoo of Naboo. She wishes to make an appointment with you for this evening.” 

“What is the urgent matter that the Senator sees fit to disturb my evening for?”

“She claims it is a matter of legal interference with your investments in a company on Naboo.” 

“Which company?” 

“One called Swoop Parts and Engines.” Vader wondered what his front business for the slave rescue would be doing that meant it needed his personal public opinion. For the senator to contact him about it they would have to forge an enormous amount of documents, a problem that would justify his attention would need media attention. 

He wondered what the queen needed. 

“What is the trouble?” 

“I cannot say. It is too sensitive for me to handle, sir.” 

“Very well.” Vader waved for the man to leave and waited twenty minutes before finally accepting the senator’s call. “What do you want, Senator?” The man, Imperial appointed and oily enough that giving his hair a wring would probably fill an entire oil bath for a protocol droid. He was distasteful and a permanent stain on Naboo’s usually flawless face. 

“Lord Vader,” his voice oozed though the comm line like the words might gain sentience and form a miniature version of the man then proceed to wander around his office smirking condescendingly. “I am calling on behalf of the queen.” 

“Spit it out, Senator,” he ordered and the man looked faintly miffed. 

“It seems your company Swoop Parts and Engines is facing some legal concerns on Naboo.” He nodded, perhaps attempting to convey his sympathy but only managed to look constipated. “I was asked to inform you directly by the…my queen. Until further notice all shipments and work must be suspended. Until you have sorted it all out.” 

“Indeed.” Vader gritted his teeth and wondered why the queen was requesting a meeting with him. It had to be important. “Is that all?”

“Yes, Lord Vader.” Before the man would create an ecological disaster in his office by speaking more, Vader switched off his comm unit. 

Whatever reason the queen had for setting had for getting his attention in such a public way would have to wait. He had too much work between now and the first public outing he and Jifus would have. Plus the new concerns of preparing for a fashion show. 

“I heard someone is going on a date!” He looked up from his datapad to see Luke standing at the doorway. 

“Son.” He looked back down and Luke scurried across the room. He pretended to not notice how drawn the boy looked. “What brings you here?” 

“I figured it out,” Vader waited, “you’re going on a date with Mom to some silly ball in a week or two. Whatever. Anyway, you’re going from place to place to try and find someone who can make a dress for Mom.” 

“Do you not have school assignments?” 

“Not yet, classes start the day after the ball.” Luke’s wicked grin was obvious even if Vader wasn’t looking at him. “Come on, is this exciting? You’re going on a date?” 

“I would remind you that your mother and I are married, Luke.” 

“I know. I know but you’re not…in love. You’re just married. That’s all legally binding and everything but it’s not…all that. Come on! I’m excited!” 

He considered the small teenager who leaned against his desk. To think that someone so young was such a prolific thief was nearly insane. That Luke, who looked so innocent, was capable of the crimes Vader suspected him of was nearing difficulty. If Vader hadn’t seen Luke in the alleyway of Nar Shadda he would have never looked twice at him. 

If he hadn’t see the boy breaking the rules of the imperial academy with breathless ease. If hadn’t heard the boy’s speech about the angels. If he hadn’t...Luke had fallen into his view by perfect accident. 

“Father?” He shook himself from his considerations. 

“We are attending this event only because there is little choice in the matter. Had we the choice both we would be continuing our normal routine.” 

“Well that’s exciting then. It’s not a normal routine. You’re going to have fun. You’re going to dance and waltz and hang out. You don’t even have to hang out with the other people. You can pretend it’s just a fancy dinner for you and Mom.” 

Why did the thief care so much? What was his angle? What would he gain from Vader’s growing attachment to Jifus? How was the child fixing this into a scheme? 

“Where is your mother?” 

“Off with the members of her fellowship. They’re all breaking in their new office space by writing on the walls. “

“Indeed.” 

“I’m not kidding.” 

“I believe you. Where is Ryoo?” 

“She’s supposed to be back from class soon. We’re going to hang out tonight.” The challenging look in the bright eyes was enough to make Vader sigh wearily. 

“Very well.” He did need to start designing the clothing line. Force, that was something he’d never expected himself to ever think. “I will be working late tonight. Do not disturb me. Pass this message to your mother when she returns.”

“You don’t even want to say hi?” 

“I am consumed with work,” Vader replied and Luke rolled his eyes. He chose to not comment and waited for Luke to drag himself from his office. It took the boy long enough too. Reminding Vader exactly what a disgruntled Ahsoka would be like when she was held to her duties as his Padawan. 

As soon as Luke was gone, he stared down at the datapad and considered what he could design. He knew how the fashion system worked in the Empire. He knew the habits and how they thought. Vader frowned and decided that if this is what his double life was going to consist of then he would do exactly what he wanted. 

Gentleman did not need to conform. 

He would shine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was going to make this way longer but inspiration dried up and depression is making it's rounds again.


	25. Project Runaway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Project Harvester comes to town. Luke needs entertainment. Vader works on his fashion line.

The first order of business was to design the gown. Then the rest of the line and then have it shipped and prepared for the runway. Models had to be hired as did make-up artists. Caterers for the after parties that Gentlemen would have to host and attend. He needed background information on the rest of the designers present. He needed to book rooms for himself, the crew, models, and then book workspace before the presentation. 

He could have worked from his residential office. Except he was continuously bombarded by Gran-Moffs, Admirals, Captains, and stormtroopers. Not to mention the itching sensation of guilt that the longer he worked alone in his office; the longer he was deliberately ignoring his wife. 

Which was why he finally determined that it would be easier to spend weeks leading up to the ball in his other office. His new office. He packed what he needed, it wasn’t much and spent the rest of the morning trying to think of what excuse he could use to leave. 

“Hey, Kit.” The door cracked open just wide enough for Jifus to stick her head through. “I know you said you wanted quiet but.” 

“I must leave.” He stood, inspired. 

“Excuse me?” 

“I must leave to face the Trials of Darkness.” He lied. “I must rejuvenate my dark powers.” 

“Uhh.” Jifus blinked slowly, her mouth tightening in a way that suggested she was only barely restraining her annoyed humor. “Really?”

“Yes.”

“I see.” The wrinkles around her eyes deepened as she scowled. Vader wondered what he might have done to arouse such anger. 

“You are irritated with me.” He ventured, his mask and vocoder making even his unsure tone confident. 

“Are you running away?”

“Am I what?” Of the various insults he might have accidentally handed the doctor, abandonment hadn’t been one he’d considered. 

“Running away.” White eyebrows rose. “From me.” 

“No.” 

“I know for a damn fact that you don’t need to stick your force powers into an outlet and sit there for a few hours.” 

“For a Jedi perhaps.” Maybe the lie wouldn’t work. “I must also train the newest inquisitor.” Now he’d have to make a side-stop on Mustafar. Maybe he could get out of that if he worked quickly enough. 

“Are you leaving because of Ryoo?” Vader paused and felt his heart tighten. 

“No,” he said slowly, “as painful as a reminder as she is, I would not do you the disservice of such.” He couldn’t think of a word. What he wanted to do was kick Ryoo out of the residence and never see her again. To never see how closely she resembled her aunt in words and actions. He didn’t though. He knew what sort of manipulations Palpatine had in mind. Vader’s revenge would be sweet. Ryoo was not her aunt. Ryoo was Ryoo. A somewhat reckless medical student with entirely too much idealism. He was persistent in reminding himself of the fact. Eventually, if he told himself enough, then it would translate into his actions. 

He was also hyper aware that this small revenge on Palpatine boiled down a simple phrase ‘emotional maturity.' A fact he would rather eat chalk dust than admit to. 

“Alright. How long are you going to be gone?” 

“I will return in time for the ball.” 

“If you don’t, then I have to go alone, and I’m not going to be held responsible for punting somebody through the punch bowl. Before you leave, at least say goodbye to Luke.” 

“Where is Luke?”

“Still asleep. It’s only six in the morning. How long have you been up?” 

Vader didn’t reply, and Jifus made a noise of understanding. “I’m going to leave for my fellowship. Going to try and cure an incurable disease.” 

“You will succeed,” Vader told her. She rolled her eyes and left. He finished typing up the commands to have his ship prepared and then to his agents to have his things smuggled from the planet. Tove was informed of his imminent arrival. As was Vanee. When he’d finished the preparations, he went to find his son. 

The thief was curled up beneath every one his blankets in the center of his bed. It wasn’t a very restful sleep. Luke was mumbling under his breath and twitching. When Vader pulled the blankets back; his face was contorted and fearful. 

With little else to do, he shook Luke awake. The boy startled awake, flailing and yelling. He nearly scrambled off the bed in his hurry to escape. Vader watched from his place beside the bed, hooking his thumbs into his belt. 

“Good morning.” 

“Father?” Luke’s breathing was still frantic, his eyes still wide. “What is it? Why are you in here?” 

Vader graciously ignored the disrespectful and accusatory tone. “I have come to say goodbye.” 

“Goodbye?” He twisted his blankets between his fingers. “Where are you going?”

“To rejuvenate my dark powers.” The exact expression of muted humor stole over the young face. 

“Of course.” He pursed his lips, but a smile still tugged at them. “Um, how long will you be gone?” 

“Two weeks.” 

“You’ll be back in time for your date, right?” Luke finally looked worried. “You can’t stand Mom up on your first date together. What about her gown? She’s got to have a better one. Also, can I go.” 

“Child, we are married. Her gown is handled. No, you cannot attend the ball. You will have school the next day.” 

“School.” Luke rolled his eyes, “but you’ll be back right?” 

“Yes.” He stared at him a bit longer before shrugging.

“Then have fun, I guess.”

“Thank you,” Vader said dryly. “I did notice your uneasiness as you slept. What is bothering you?” 

“Nothing.” Luke looked away, “just…not sleeping great.” 

“Why?” 

“No reason.” 

“If you need assistance I can guide you to sleep. It is a simple matter.” 

“I don’t want anyone in my head,” Luke replied. His eyes shifted around, and he refused to look at this father. “Um, where are you going?” 

“To an ancient Sith temple,” he lied. “Behave for your mother. I will work with any infractions when I return.” 

“I haven’t done anything.” Luke rolled his eyes, “and you’re assuming Mom can’t handle it herself.” 

“Behave,” Vader warned, acknowledging the truth to the statement. “We will speak more when I return.” Luke nodded, and Vader let himself from the boy's room. If he didn’t want help with the nightmares, then that was Luke’s problem. 

##$#$3

The Grand Inquisitor rose from his kneeling position with absolute grace and patience that Vader had never been able to manage. Still, his dark eyes were focused on Vader’s even as he waited for the Sith to speak. 

“Of the training Inquisitors, which is the most promising?” He demanded. They were overlooking the training arena of Vader’s Mustafar home. Only a dozen Inquisitors were below, training lightsabers held in unsteady hands. 

“Very few of them, my lord. Their force abilities are weak, and they are burdened by unnecessary sentiment. I am confident that this will be remedied in due time.” 

Vader wanted someone he could kill. Someone who was having little trouble with fanaticism and mindless obedience to authority. Someone easy to kill and someone he didn’t want roaming the streets of the Empire. 

“We are looking into a new child, my lord.” Vader waved for him to continue. “A girl, from Lothal. Her scores are high enough to gather the attention of the local commanders. I will be leaving to retrieve her this evening.” 

“Who is this child?” 

“Dhara Leonis. Her parents are scientists. She has shown significant aptitude.” Vader remained quiet. “There is little in the way of undesirable traits. She is not a rule breaker and does not seem one with a significantly strong personality.” 

“Retrieve her. I will examine her personally.” Vader intoned, setting as much threat into the words as he could manage. The Grand Inquisitor bowed and left him alone. Vader continued to survey the training agents below before turning away from the balcony. Vanee joined him in the next hallway. “I will be meditating with the forces of Darkness.” He almost cringed at his own words. Unlike the very human and understandable and even, dare he say it, sane response his wife and son had had- Vanee stared at him with absolute admiration. There was none of the muffled mocking, the attitude, and expressions that meant they were humoring him. They believed him. 

Still. With Vanee and the rest of the castle staff now taken care of, he was now free to rescue the young child. As soon as he was in his mediating chamber, he took the secret route out. The one he’d installed without Palpatine’s knowledge. It was a short walk to his hanger where he stored a few of his lesser used ships. Ones he was now going to be using for his Gentleman business. 

The Grand Inquisitor was only a few minutes of ahead of him. He watched the man jump to hyperspace and shot his ship after him. 

$#$#$

Dhara was proud of herself. Her work for the weeks done. Her chores of the day were caught up, and her studying had already been knocked out. Still, it did sting that the commanders hadn’t let her go on the hiking exercise. She blinked and then turned when her communicator went off. There was a short message waiting for her. A summons to the headmaster's office. 

“Huh.” She didn’t remember breaking any rules. Still, she wasn’t going to disappoint anyone now. Not when she was so close. 

“Dhara Leonis.” As soon as she stepped through the office door, a cool, bitter voice broke over her ears. She stared up at an armored alien, a species she didn’t recognize. “Good evening.” 

“Good evening.” She stared a little longer. Something flared in warning. Tugging at her to run away. Her instincts had never been wrong.

“You, young human,” the way he twisted the last word made her spine crawl. Her entire body froze as he stepped closer. “Have qualified for specialty training. That which will be used to serve the mighty empire to an even great degree.” 

Dhara swallowed. The Headmaster was frozen in his chair, nervous. He wasn’t looking at her. “What sort of specialty training, sir?” 

“Very special training.” He said. He stalked closer, even more, frightening than before. When he smiled, his teeth were too sharp. His eyes were amber and dangerous. “Please come with me.”

“Um, I don’t know if I’m ready for any other sort of training.” She said, “and my parents don’t know if I should.”

“You misunderstand, Miss Leonis, you do not have a choice.” Her instincts said to run. Her training kept her feet planted. Her mind whirled, and every nerve in her body buzzed with fear. “I am the Grand Inquisitor.” He reached for her, she stared and, at the very last moment, punched him the face. He hadn’t been expecting it. The alien reared back, shocked, as Dhara finally followed her screaming instincts and ran. 

“CHILD!” 

She ran, knocking into troopers and officers alike. She heard him running after her. There was a snap-hiss that couldn’t have boded well, but she didn’t look back. 

“GRAB HER!” The Grand Inquisitor shouted. “DO NOT LET HER ESCAPE!” 

“NO!” Dhara shouted, pain erupting on her side as a stormtrooper finally reacted. A blaster bolt had grazed. Still, it was enough to send her crashing to the floor. Troopers were on her, cuffing her and hauling her upright. 

“Well, you certainly have good instincts. That would be your force abilities.” The Grand Inquisitor skidded to a halt and stared down at her. She curled into herself as much as possible. 

“What’s the force?” She glanced at him and then to the trooper holding her up. “What’s going on?” 

“What a punch as well.” He paused and retaliated. Punching her into unconsciousness. “Bring the brat to my ship. Ensure she is well secured.” With a haughty sniff, he turned and walked toward the hanger, the stormtroopers dragging the unconscious teenager. 

#$#$# 

Vader, now dressed as Gentleman, despised hiding. True, he was sitting in the cock pit and waiting for the Grand Inquisitor to come aboard with the child. If anyone had bothered to look inside the cockpit, they would have seen him. Still, he considered it is hiding. He wasn’t confronting the smug inquisitor on the open field. He crossed his arms and stared out the viewport. 

“Secure her here.” The smooth voice reached his ears. Vader waited for the stormtroopers to leave. There was a muffled conversation between them. He could sense the child’s force signature. It was bright. Not too powerful as the Jedi of old might have been, but it was bright. She could certainly accomplish much if she tried. “Leave.” The stormtroopers clattered off the ship. “Well,” who was he talking to? “You will certainly be an excellent prize for my lord.” He was talking to the unconscious child. A child he had just kidnapped. Vader stood and moved silently to the door.

Dhara Leonis was a tall girl; her dark hair was yanked into an uncomfortable looking bun. Her face was showing a dark bruise growing over her left eye. The Grand Inquisitor was patting her cheek and still speaking. 

“You are speaking to a person who cannot hear you,” Vader said dryly. The fanatic whirled around, red lightsaber blade flaring to life. There was confusion over his gray and red face. 

“Who are you?” 

“I wonder,” Vader paused, “if you are only dramatic or if you have some other disturbing notion in your head.” 

“How did you get aboard my ship?” The aura of control and coolness was slipping. The alien had already been startled. The usual tactics of intimidation were now Vader’s. 

“Is she responsible for the bruise?” Vader didn’t answer any of the questions. “Is that why you struck a defenseless child? If that why, you are indulging in voyeurism?” There must have been a few notions of Jedi dignity beneath the Grand Inquisitors brainwashing; because he straightened, defensive. “It does not matter. You will not survive the hour.” 

“Attempt anything,” the red blade lowered to Dhara’s throat, “and this child will pay the price for your impudence.” 

“Will she?” Still leaning against the door, Vader uncoiled his force signature from hiding. Unfurling his powers to be visible to any other force sensitive. Dhara immediately whimpered, and the Grand Inquisitor’s eyes widened. 

“What are you doing?” He demanded. Once a Jedi Guardian and even older than Vader, he was still less powerful than the true Sith. “My lord, I’ve done as you’ve commanded.”

“You have.” Vader agreed. “To the letter.” 

“Yes.” 

“If my letter told you to hit the child.”

“My lord, she was disrespectful. She attacked me.” 

“Which I am sure you deserved.” It was tricky to do, but he managed to make his force signature loom menacingly. The alien did not retreat, but he was clearly unnerved. 

“I apologize, Lord Vader. What sort of test is this?” 

“Not one you will survive,” Vader replied. The whirling red lightsaber flared back to life as the alien lurched forward to plunge the blade into the Sith’s heart. It crossed with Vader’s. He Stih savored the man’s terror before returning the intended favor. The red blade blossomed from the Grand Inquisitors back like a deadly flower. He shoved the body into an airlock, to be spaced later, and took off. 

#$#43

Dhara woke up to the sound of a bird singing. The animal sang with boundless confidence and excitement. As if reveling in blossom scented breeze that was brushing over it and her. Enjoying the cool air that felt like morning. 

Slowly, she opened her eyes and sat up. To her immediate left was a window. A long tree branch covered in bright blue blossoms was extended across it. 

A bright pink bird was sitting on the windowsill, singing. Beyond it, the sun was rising. Orange and red fire was spreading across the clouds in the distance. 

“What?” The last thing she remembered was absolute fear. Being struck by the weird alien. Stormtroopers are tackling her. Everything is telling her to run away. She touched her head where the man had hit her and felt a bandage. “I don’t.” When she pushed back the blankets she noticed was still wearing her Academy uniform too. Even her boots. “Where am I?” The bird didn’t answer, taking flight in a puff of wings and air. The branch swayed in the breeze and despite the situation, Dhara felt calm. It place sure didn’t look terrible. 

She leaned out the window and gaped at the enormous garden below. It was enormous. It spread as far as she could see. Trees and bushes with an enormous swathe of grass and flowers with paths winding between them. There was a pond in the distance, glittering under the early morning sunlight.

“Wow.” She scrambled off the bed and then stared at the room. It was a little bare but still enormous. There was a mural of coral reef painted on the ceiling. Several gigantic windows were across the two outside walls. Three of the windows had seats with cushions built into them. The other ones were wide enough to set several plants on. All of them were open, giving the room a delicious coolness. There was a small table against another wall. There was a glass of water and a note. 

[Dhara Leonis. When you wake drink this water and find the nearest person. Request Gentleman. Everything will be explained then.]

“Uh.” She stared at the note and shrugged. She downed the water and wandered from the room. The rest of the house was beautiful too. The walls were cheerful colors, covered in art and tapestries. The carpet and sometimes wood beneath her feet was beautiful. There were plants on nearly every stand; enormous windows let in bright light. It was almost a dream-like. 

“You’re Leonis, right?” In the middle of examining a vine climbing up a wooden stake, she didn’t hear the other woman enter. When she turned around, there was an older lady standing a few feet away. “I’m…someone.”

“Where am I? What’s going on?” 

“You’re safe for now. And I’ll let my employer explain everything that’s going on. He told me you were awake.” 

“Who is it?” She didn’t sense danger. “Is it that Gentleman person?” 

“You know who it is?” 

“I just read the note.” She followed the woman, her gray hair was pinned up, but a few plucky strands hung down over her face. “I don’t…what happen?” 

“The boss will explain.” The woman said as she brushed the flyaway hair from her eyes. “He got all of us into this mess. You’re going to be hungry in a bit. You were hit pretty hard. Our doctor had to make sure you weren’t getting a concussion.” 

“It did hurt.” 

“You were only unconscious for a bit. You were asleep for the rest of it.” 

“Oh. Who are you though? Who is Gentleman?” 

“I’m…well….a lot of people call me Control. You can call me that.” The woman, Control, led her through a comfortable sitting room. She then showed Dhara the entrance to a workshop. 

This room was even more interesting than the rest of house. There were racks of fabrics. Boxes of beads and jewels lining a whole wall. A dozen or so plastic models of assorted species stood around at random intervals. Some had fabric, the beginnings of gowns or suits, pinned to them. Others were bare but with pencil markings on their white exteriors. There were organized chaos and a comfortable air of hard work. 

“What?” The man appeared from the mess, stepping from behind a rack of fabrics. Dhara stared. In all the air of art and beauty the house seemed to lounge in, the man was the beginning of the feeling. He had no face, not one that she could see. There was a pale gauze over here his eyes might be. Though he definitely had a head. Gentleman was wrapped head to shins in the fabric. It was blue and silver; it moved under the lights of the workroom like a living wave. His boots were practical black. Over his head like a delicate net were bunches of white pearls. They were the only jewelry he wore. He held an entire bolt of silver fabric in one hand and a small box of glittering diamonds in the other. 

“Hi,” she squeaked. “Um, who are you?” 

“Gentleman.” He said. The bolt of fabric was set down on a work table alongside the diamonds. “Welcome.”

“Um. What am I doing here? What happened? The last thing I remember was getting hit in the head and then.” She was suddenly hyper-aware of her cadet uniform. The bland black and gray. She felt suddenly drab surrounded by so many pretty things. “What’s going on?” 

“Do you remember the Grand Inquisitor?” Gentleman turned away and lowered his impressive height to a low-slung chaise. It was a deliberate attempt not to intimidate her.

“I…yeah. He was scary. I punched him in the face.” 

“He is head of the Inquisitors. Part of an organization that is currently operating something called Operation Harvester. Their objective is to kidnap promising children and to send them to a planet called Ankaris. There, they will be trained and brainwashed to serve the Empire.”

“But I already serve the Empire! I’m an Imperial cadet.” 

“Not any longer. Control.” The woman handed a confused Dhara the data pad. 

“Sorry, kid.” There was an article pulled up. Proclaiming she’d run away on a training exercise. 

“But I didn’t runaway. They stole me. They dragged me away. I don’t even know why?” 

“You have potential.” Gentleman’s deep voice was soothing but not enough to make a now-frantic Dhara calm down. 

“What about my parents! What about my little brother! What about Auntie Nags? They’re all going to be worried.”

“Be grateful they still have the capabilities to be grateful.” 

“Why do you say that?” 

“Would you have been taken successfully. At the end of your training, you would have been forced to kill them.”

“Kill them.” The wind was knocked from her sails. Every argument she was planning on using was gone. “I would never kill them. I love them. They’re my parents. They’re my family!” 

“They are under surveillance by the Empire was well. Any attempt to contact them will result in their and your arrest.” 

“But they are worried.” 

“They are alive.” Gentleman stood again, Dhara leaned away and covered her face with her hands. 

“But…but I want to go home. What am I supposed to do now?” She nearly staggered into Control who took her shoulders carefully and led her over to a seat. “How do I know this isn’t some elaborate set-up to test my loyalty?”

“It is not. Your instincts told you that the Grand Inquisitor. Do they tell me that I am a danger to you?” 

“Well.”She stared at the enormous man. “No.” 

“I have the means to set you up with a new life anywhere in the galaxy if you wish it. However, until the Imperial search for the missing cadet and the dead Inquisitor ends.” 

“You killed him!” 

“Yes.” 

“WHY?”

“He was no friend of mine, and it seemed fitting justice for his crimes.” 

“But…how long do I have to stay?” 

“Just until the search wears off. Then you may go anywhere. We will be providing you with fake documentation and the means and abilities to make yourself a life.” 

“But I didn’t even finish school! I don’t know how to live alone! I can’t just go careening off into a life of my own! I’m 16!” Gentleman seemed startled. Control raised an eyebrow. 

“Miss Leonis.” 

“Dhara,” she rubbed her head, “you might as well call me Dhara. I’m going to be here a while.” 

“Very well.” Gentleman waited for her to speak further. “There is food prepared if you are hungry.”

“What are you?” She looked at the room, “are you a fashion designer?” 

“Yes.” Oh, somehow, fashion designer didn’t seem right for him. There was something about him that seemed off. 

“I am also the owner and operator of a nightclub from which my criminal organization is based.” Dhara stared before shaking her head. “I promise that you are safe here.” 

“Um, but what am I going to do? I mean, my life is gone.” 

“It is but not as you considered it to be, young one. You are alive. Your family is alive. There are possibilities in your future. Ones you might not have considered.” 

“But I wanted.” She shrank in on herself and then looked from Control to Gentleman. “I guess I could eat something.” 

“I’ll show you where to go.” Control waved her out of the room.

$#$#$

“You’re angry.” Vader watched Tove stalk back into the room.

“I’m pissed, boss. Sir. Whatever. The point is…you’re In too deep. Gentleman is showing up at his manor he’d left empty for so long. Taking the girl from the Grand Inquisitor! Killing the Grand Inquisitor? What sort of game are you running? I committed treason. I don’t mind breaking a few laws.” Tove threw her hands up, “but you’re being cryptic and making me do things that don’t make any sense. Don’t have a single connection point! What is going on?” 

“Are you comfortable.” Tove did have a point. 

“Comfortable, comfortable with what?” 

“With treason?”

“I don’t know. I was. I have always been an investigator. I don’t break laws. I enforce them.”

“You’ve been breaking the law recently.” Vader pointed out. He added another layer of fabric and pinned it.

“Because I thought you were doing something with it! I thought we were going to hunt down criminals! Like Luke! Like Gohan and this crew of nasties. I didn’t think I’d be day drinking with a mother of four as the band frakking plays! I didn’t think I’d take over all those gangs either. Boss, what am I supposed to be doing?”

“The law. What is it?” 

“Rules and shit designed to keep order.” 

“And what,” Vader had to treat carefully. Tove had been a trusted agent so far. Her concerns were valid and true. “If the law was wrong? What if the lawmakers were wrong. What if the law was, itself, unlawful.” 

“Boss.” Tove took a seat and buried her head in her hands. “What do you mean?” 

“Tove, you’ve served the law for decades, when has the law failed you? I know it has.” 

“I…” there was a long gone look in her eyes. “There was….a few dozen times but I never.” 

“Did anything?” He finally turned around to look at her. “Tove, I want to do something.” 

“Like what? Adopt every sad eyed and tortured kid that comes to your door? You’ve got a felon already! What’s a force, sensitive teenager? Sure, that’ll be fine. I’ll just stand by and raise a kid and take care of the house. You know, I never took you for a bigamist.” 

Vader felt his heart stop. He lurched to his feet and glowered down at Tove. “Do not!” He thundered, “speak to me in such a manner.” 

“I am not some idiot puppet, boss. I know when I’m being manipulated. What the hells do you want out of this whole Gentleman business?” 

“There are plans in motion.” 

“What kind of plans.” 

“It is not for you to know.” 

Tove’s fury flattened out, “you stop trying to drag me around on a string, or I’m going walk out the front door and leave. There will be nothing! Nothing! You don’t know half of the business going on down here anymore! You don’t know how to!” 

“To destroy the Emperor.” He said. Tove choked on her words and staggered away, coughing. 

“What?” She managed, her voice wavering and disbelieving. “What did you say?”

“I am, I have been working in conjecture with other interested parties who want to depose the Emperor.”

“Rebels?”

“No, older parties. Much older. Those that wanted to destroy the Republic as well.” 

“Separatists?” Tove’s thin eyebrows rose. 

“Some.” 

“What?” She sat down again. “When did this?” 

“Two years ago.” 

“Two years ago?” 

“I cannot name the interested parties. I can only tell you they exist. I only know of one anyway. They communicate with the central hub of the dissenters.”

“Do they know you?” 

“They do. Only one. They will not share my name with anyone else.” 

“You trust them?” 

“I do.” Tove stared at him. “If you have a single shred of decency, of morality you will see that the Emperor is cruel and useless. He is the reason this galaxy is being plunged into chaos. We both know what needs to be done. He must be gotten rid of.” 

“Then why…” she waved at the room. “The wife?” 

“I was ordered to marry by the Emperor. I was married once before. This is an attempt to control and torture me, including sending my niece to live with me under the guise of a political prisoner.” The older agent looked ready to keel over. 

“The boy?” 

“He works with a team of thieves. Thieves that I want to use.” 

“You adopted him because you wanted to use him?” 

“Not originally.” 

“Then…” Vader felt a particular tinge of guilt. His feelings about Luke was complicated. “What about Gentleman?”

“He is a guise. Needed to distract from my real identity. Needed for potential ties to the rebellion. Should I use the Four Child crew I will have more ability to take down the Emperor.” 

“This is a long con?” 

“Yes.” 

“Alright then.” Tove nodded even as her expression was blank. “I gunna, go…get some food with…Dhara. “

“Tove.” 

“Don’t. Don’t talk to me right now. I need space and…” she looked back at Vader, “sorry for calling you a bigamist.” She wandered from his workroom. Vader deflated and returned to his dress. 

#$#$#

There was only so many times Luke could stand to sit in his room and play video games and pretend that everything was okay. He was sick and tired of feeling like some delicate prop. 

He snuck out. At two in the morning, he was watching a dozen Imperial officers sharing drinking in a lounge and watching scantily clad women dancing around. 

Luke knew these men were running an embezzlement scheme. Scaring fines out of people and pocketing money that wasn’t theirs. Technically the money was supposed to go to the Empire, and Luke knew that those were the only cases they brought up against their officers. These five men happened to be guilty of a few more crimes but ones that the Empire wouldn’t prosecute. 

With a sigh, he leaned from his table and tapped a passing server on the waist. He kept his eyes on her face as she stopped. Her scanty uniform hardly covered anything and she looked annoyed. 

“Yes?” 

“Miss,” his jawa uniform made her eyebrows rise, but she waited for him to continue. “The man in that dining party. Second, from the left has a small data-file in his pocket.” 

“What? You want me to grab it?” 

“Yep.” Luke produced his money chip and showed just how much money was on it. It wasn’t a lot compared to the fortune he’d stashed in various safe houses around the galaxy. Still, it was enough to make her eyes widen and her mouth to drop. 

“Alright.” She nodded carefully and made off. Luke looked back into his drink and set it on the table. He nibbled on the appetizer with deliberate slowness. When he heard the annoyed shout of the officer, he smiled. Luke set his money on the table and walked out. 

“I got it.” The server joined him in the coat room. “My money.”

“Thanks for your work,” Luke said and tossed the money as she tossed the chip. “I don’t exist.” 

“According to the law,” she rolled her eyes, “neither do I. You’re not special.” 

“Thanks.” Luke stepped back out onto the busy street. A pit stop at a post office later, he was home free.

There was too little to do at home. Not enough entertainment, not enough to do, not enough to bother with. Just him and his mindless entertainment and the suffocation of his thoughts and nightmares. Talking with Deno and Niles just distracted them from their work. Hanging out with Ryoo was fun except that they eventually fell to arguing and then fighting. With Ryoo, they still hadn’t found common ground. They hadn’t found a place to talk from. Last time they’d dissolved into fighting they’d both ended up in time-out.

Which was pretty embarrassing since they both considered themselves too old to be time -out like kids. 

He’d need to pick up an apology for Ryoo. 

Luke glanced up at the dark Imperial Center sky and then at the hundreds of bright lights that made an artificial day. 

“It is magnificent isn’t it?” Luke glowered at the metal beneath his feet. 

“Go away.” 

“Luke, what did you do tonight?”

“I’m ignoring an annoying ghost. Dead people shouldn’t meddle in my life.”

“You should tell your father about your nightmares.” The ghost told him. 

“Go away.”

“He can help you.” 

“I don’t want any help.” He didn’t look at the robed ghost walking along beside him. 

“Luke, you need the help. You know it. If this continues, it would have disastrous effects.”

“Shut up.” He snuck his way back into the residence and found his bed. Just as he was about to change out of his clothes when he heard someone walking up the steps to his room. He dove under the blankets just as the door slid open slowly and his mother walked through. She inched through the room and set something on his bedside table. 

Luke feigned sleep even when she patted his head and finally left. As soon as she was gone, he sat up and snatched the thing she’d set down. It was a box and a note. The note read. 

“Luke. Happy Family Day. It isn’t usually a day for presents, but I thought you might like to have one for your first one with us.” 

Luke rubbed dirt and makeup from his nose and opened the little box. Inside was a little pocket watch. The kind he’d only ever seen in the old movies and the old paintings. There was nothing electrical about it. The entire thing was tiny gears and kinetic energy. Its casing was a bright silver metal that Luke didn’t recognize. Etched on the inside was his name. 

“Wow.” It had probably cost a lot of mone; almost as much as he had spent on the getting the information tonight. These things weren’t cheap. He looked at the watch and then back into the box. There was a small note inside.

“Luke,” it read, “It’s traditional in my family for children to receive a watch when they turn ten. I thought you might like it for now even though you’re a little older. When you’re done reading this come find me, and I’ll start teaching you about your adopted heritage.” 

“Wow.” There was a moment of vertigo so dizzying he lay back in his bed and stare at the ceiling. “I’ve got an adopted heritage.”

“You do.” Jinn reappeared. “That is a nice watch.” 

“Thanks.” 

“You should go get clean and go to bed,” Jinn said. Luke nodded and set the watch back in its box. When he looked back, Jinn was gone. 

#$#$#

Leia sat up as the familiar form of Jinn stepped into existence beside her bed. She smiled, “Mr. Jinn.” 

“Leia.” His smile was like a balm on a cut. It soothed an of her agitation. “How have you been?”

“Oh,” he sat down on the edge of her bed, his form not making a dent in the blankets there. “Just fine.” 

#$#$#$#

Dhara spent the next few days getting to know the manor and the grounds around it. They were in a wealthy neighborhood. Over the garden walls, she could see small roads maintenance workers and the other houses in the far distance. Their gardens were just as enormous. 

For a place to spend her time, it was comfortable if a bit lonely. The only company was Control, who was gone almost all the time. Then there was Gentleman who was constantly busy with his fabric and sewing. No one else came around the manor. 

“Am I going to be alone forever?” On the fifth day of living in Gentleman’s home, she finally wandered back into the work room. There was a lot of fabric laying around, and he seemed to be muttering to himself. 

“What?” 

“Am I going to be alone forever? Just…stuck in this empty house? I need something to do. I need somebody to talk to.” 

“I am here.” 

“You’re busy, and I’m pretty sure you don’t like me.” 

“Child.” 

“What about the rest of them? The rest of project Harvester. I can’t be the only person they’re going to target. Can I do something about that? Can’t I help them?”

“How?” 

“Find them before the Empire does.” 

“How?”

“Um…I don’t know but if they were going to have to hurt people they cared about then why can’t we help them?” 

“I intend to help them.” 

“How?” 

“I could save you directly from the Grand Inquisitors grasp. I am sure I can accomplish the same goals with the others. He will be difficult for them to replace.” 

“But I can’t just sit here.”

“Do you have any hobbies to indulge in?” 

“I don’t… I guess…when I was little I used to paint.” 

“You might try painting again. As uncomfortable as this may be, there is little you can do to aid the rescue of other potential victims of Project Harvester.”   
“Ugh!” She threw herself onto the couch and flopped over. Gentleman ignored her the same way any of her parents would. “But I’m doing nothing!”

“I will send Control for supplies for painting as well as textbooks. You might also entertain yourself with training and exercise.” 

“I don’t want to train. I’m on the run.” Dhara smushed her face into the couch and blinked back her tears. She’d been crying off and on for the last few days. Adjusting was difficult while being so alone. Plus her parents were gone forever. Well, not forever, just long enough for them to think she was dead, or worse. For a while she dozed, thoughts occasionally drifting over her mind. Most them pointless or inane. “Hey.” She propped her head up finally and felt her eyes nearly pop from their sockets. There was a string threading itself through a dozen or so diamonds suspended in midair. “What the kriff?” The diamonds stopped moving. Dhara pushed herself off the couch. “What was that?” 

“I.” Gentleman fumbled for words. “It does not matter.” 

“Yeah, it does. What was that?” 

“That was nothing.” The enormous man didn’t turn to face her. 

“That was something. What was it?” 

“Child, I am sure you have something to do.” 

“I don’t. That’s why I’m here.” 

“Little one.” 

“That’s the force isn’t it?” She lurched off the couch. “That’s the Force! Whatever you just used to make the string and diamonds go together! I knew it!” 

“Dhara.” 

“Project Harvester is about that! About the Force! I mean, the mean guy said something along those lines, but I just thought it was some funky genetic trait! I didn’t think it was actually power!” Her skin seemed to vibrate right off her body. “You can teach me!” 

“No.” 

“Yes! You can! That’s how I can help the other kids! You can show me how to use the Force.” 

“NO!” Gentleman’s voice was thunderous. Terrifying enough to make her lean away. 

“Why not! You know how to use it, and I don’t. I need to learn!” 

“I will not train you.” 

“But you have to! I’m force sensitive! That’s what the guy said!” 

“No, Dhara.” 

Dhara inched closer, pleading. “But I need to know! If I can help people then doesn’t it make sense for me to learn everything I can. Use every weapon in my arsenal.”

“The Force is not a weapon. You will not be a Jedi.” 

“I don’t even know what a Jedi is.” Dhara said dismissively, “but I know that if I can use the Force then.” 

“No.” Gentleman’s impatience ratcheted up. “Get out.” 

“But, Gentleman!” 

“OUT!” Dhara froze. For the first time since she’d been in his house. For the first time since she’d woken after the kidnapping. For the first time since she’d met the man; Dhara was afraid. Without thinking, she turned on her heels and sprinted from the room. Not daring to take the looming threat as a bluff. 

#$#$# 

Vader watched Dhara flee and felt something fragile in what remained of his heart break. 

Ahsoka. 

He couldn’t. 

The girl was just a child. She had a life she wanted to get back to; parents she loved. People she wanted to be with again. She didn’t deserve the life that knowing the Force would bring. She didn’t deserve it. 

“What did you do?” He hadn’t noticed the passage of time. Vader had laid, slumped against a work table for three hours. Long enough for the evening shadows to lengthen across the floor. The sun was shining directly in his eyes. Tove walked into the room for the first time since their argument and Vader’s confession. She crouched down beside him and tapped his chest. “Boss? Why did I find Dhara crying in the garden? Why is she crying?” 

“I.” Very carefully he force himself to sit up. “May have made a mistake.” 

“Boss.” 

“I shouted at her.” Tove blinked and then buried her head in her hands. 

“Boss!” 

“I am wondering when you got so comfortable to scold me.” 

“About the time that I learned you were trying to overthrow the Emperor. Which, I mean, I might as well be on board now.” 

“Where is Dhara?” 

“In her room literally crying into her bedspread. Something I thought I’d never see.”

“Thank you, Tove.” Vader stood. He wandered from the room, wondering if it was possible for him to bandage his bleeding heart. 

Everything at once came crashing down. 

Jifus, the attempted replacement for Padme. Luke, the pawn. Ryoo, another pawn. Vader himself, nothing more than an amusing plaything for the Emperor. 

Everything about his life was supposed to be controlled by the Sith. He could not afford compassion. He couldn’t afford kindness. He couldn’t be anything what. 

He was alone. 

He was a Sith. 

He was alone.

He was Sith. 

He was a SITH! 

A SITH! 

SITH! SITH! SITH! SITH! SITH! 

A slave. 

He staggered into the wall. 

He was still a slave to the Emperor. A slave as he’d always been. A servant. A used toy. A…what could his life mean now? 

What did it mean? 

If his breath could come short, it would have. 

The consequences of his marriage to Jifus; all under the command of his master. 

He had dragged her into a mess she did not deserve to be in. 

Luke. The boy. A child. Suffering almost from the same manipulations he had suffered from. 

“BOSS!” Tove was at his side again; looking him up and down for evidence of further injury. “BOSS!” 

“Hello, Tove.” He stared at the opposite wall. The cream color framed the picture hanging there beautifully. So different from his home on the Imperial Center. 

“Boss, be straight with me. Are you dying?” 

“No.” 

“Because if you are, I need to dump your body somewhere way less incriminating.” He felt humor and smiled beneath his mask. 

“What do you do when you need to move on but are too afraid?” He asked, not really expecting an answer. 

“Well, grab a few Corellian nuts and a sausage, stick them in your underpants and keep moving.” 

“Tove.”

“You could ask for help too.” Vader stared at the old woman. “You’d be surprised to see who might be holding out a hand to help you if you just looked up.” She stuck out her hand. “You want to take down the Emperor, I’m with you. I’ve trusted you this far.”

“The child wants to learn the Force.” 

“Didn’t you just save her from that?” 

“The force, not the Sith.” 

“Then teach her. If you don’t, she’ll just find someone else. I’ve seen it happen.” 

Vader considered the still extended hand. He took it and let the woman pull him, he did most of the work, to his feet. It felt like a new beginning. A new chance. A way out from the pain. 

“You still owe me for lying to me.” Tove muttered, “I’d go apologize to the girl.” 

Vader watched her wander off, muttering to herself, and went the other way. He didn’t approach Dhara until he had a cup of tea and a plate of pastries. The same way he apologized to Jifus on the rare occasion they argued. 

When he reached Dhara’s room, her crying was audible from the hallway. It was muffled like it was buried into a pillow or blanket. 

“Dhara.” He tapped the door with his foot. The crying paused. When there was no reply, he opened the door. Dhara was still wearing her Imperial uniform. So far she’d refused to take it off, too afraid to even change into the clothes they’d bought her. When he entered, she looked. Her dark hair was loose from its bun and now floated around her head like a halo. Her eyes were red and puffy. 

“What do you want?” 

“May I speak with you?” Watery eyes fell from his face to the plate and mug in his hands. 

“What about?” There was a valiant effort to wipe away her tears and clean her face. 

“Dhara, I.” Vader paused, “I had no right or reason to raise my voice in such a manner.” Her expression froze. “Or to frighten you. You are dealing with a difficult enough transition. I apologize.” That had been supremely difficult to say. Enough so that it felt almost...liberating. As if in apologizing for what he knew was wrong he was beginning to build a foundation on which he would rebuild his freed self. 

Dhara burst into tears again. 

“Little one.” He had thought he’d done a pretty good job apologizing. Apparently not. Vader set the mug and plate down on one of the tables and moved to her side. She was halfway one and halfway off the bed. Her face buried in the bedspread and her arms clutching at pillows as if they’d keep her from sliding onto the floor. “Little one.” 

“I mi..muhhh…miss my.uuuu parr.rrents!” She cried. “I miss my dad and my mom! I miss my family.” 

“Dhara.” At a complete loss for what to do, he summoned one of the spare blankets folded at the end of her bed and draped it over her shoulders. She continued to cry. 

“I got kidnapped by some evil guy and then rescued. I don’t know where I am! I don’t have a family anymore. I don’t even know what force sensitive means! I just want something I can control! I just want. I’m so scared.” 

Vader patted her shoulders. He knew the feeling well enough. He remembered his first few nights with the Jedi. “You will see your parents again,” he promised. “This is not forever.” 

“You shouted at me.” Her tears dampened the fabric, leaving a visible spot when she looked up at him again. 

“I should not have.” 

“You…you…” Dhara’s bottom lip trembled. “I’m so scared Gentleman. I don’t know…I’m so scared.” 

He wasn’t sure what to do. When Dhara turned around and launched herself at his middle, he fell back. She was still crying. 

“Little one.” With nothing else to do as she cried, he held her close. She was in so much pain, the Force around her echoed with it. It pulled at him. 

The memory of Ahsoka burned at him. 

“Gentleman?” Dhara looked up at him, her expression confused. “Gentleman.” She must have sensed his…whatever it was. She was in his arms, surrounded by his slowly increasing self-agony. “Gentleman!” Urgently she shook him, “Gentleman!” 

“You do not want the life of a trained force sensitive,” he said even as something broke in his head. 

“Gentleman?” 

“You do not want it. It will be a life of pain. It will be horrible suffering. I will be the cause of that pain. Child, I cannot do it again.” 

“You don’t know that.” She wiped away her tears. “I could do it.” 

“Perhaps. I trained my daughter, and she lives a half-life. A cursed life. Because of me. Every day is a question of survival and pain. I do not want that life for you, Dhara. You deserve better. You deserve your family.” 

“I want my family but…” 

“Please.” The tone must have stopped her. “Do not ask me again. I could not bear to be the cause of another’s death.” 

“Okay.” Dhara agreed. She leaned back on her haunches and pulled her blanket closer. “Thanks for…apologizing. I forgive you.” He stared at her and nodded slowly. “I’m sorry for pressuring you.” 

“There is nothing for you to apologize for.” He finally stood and looked to the door. “I will send Control to check on you later. I must go.” Vader fled. 

#$#$#

Tove glanced from the data pad to Dhara. The girl had finally changed from her uniform to some of the clothes they bought. Right now she was wearing sleeping clothes and cradling a mug of tea. The plate of pastries that her boss had swiped from the kitchen was half demolished. 

She didn’t think she could stomach a pastry right now. 

The list of injuries on her screen make every meal she ‘d eaten in the last ten years want to come up. It was every single physical ailment that Vader suffered. A full layout of the suit and what it did to him. 

And the command to find someone who could fix it. 

Tove watched the shadow of Vader flit across the hall outside the room as he moved toward his work room. The work on his fashion line and his plans to depose the Emperor none withstanding; Vader had a lot of work to do.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The Ball is next chapter. I promise. There was a serious plot development in this one. It will be obvious later in the story.


	26. Prelude

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I know I said that this would be the ball...but it isn't. 
> 
> Vader and Jifus discuss things. Luke is a kid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I cut it up because the chapter got too long and this seemed more natural. Sorry. (ish)

Two weeks of solid work made Vader want to fall over one of the couches and sleep for the next two. He had nearly shredded his gloves twice over with needle mistakes. He had managed to sew his own gloves to the gown he’d been working on at the time. 

Twice.

He had slept only an hour or so each night.

Even the tension in his house was ignored. Dhara avoided him, and Tove didn’t return to the manor until he was preparing to return to the Imperial center. 

Vader spent enough time in the workroom that he’d begun to hate it. 

“Boss.” Tove stomped into the room with a scowl. Her attention shifted from his mask to the twelve outfits standing on their mannequins. “What the shit? How did you do all this?” 

“I haven’t slept in two weeks.” He groused. “What is it?” 

“Just…the fitting went well. She looks pretty good. Do you want to see?” 

“No.” Tove pursed her lips and shrugged. 

“Boss, are you dying?” 

“You’ve seen the schematics of my suit.” He waved her off and stood slowly. His gaze wandered from one dress to another. “This is good work.”

“Well, we hired the models you wanted. Five human, five twi’leks, five rodians, five gungans, and five of the others on the list.” 

“It is easier to design a few for each species than an entire line for one.” Vader grunted and gestured to the twi’lek mannequins. “These are the best of my work.” 

“I like them all.” Tove wandered deep into the room. “If nothing else, you’re going to make a splash at the show. You might have some Stormtroopers send after you. You weren’t kidding about your anti-Imperial movement. This is going to be a great kick-off point.”

“Indeed.” 

“How are you doing to handle the fallout of the doctors dress? I mean, people are going to flip when they see the other stuff you made. They might accuse her of anti-Imperial sentiment.” 

“They might.” He agreed. “No one will do anything.” 

“Alright, if you say so. Also, you’re due back on Imperial Center tomorrow morning for a meeting with the Emperor. I hope you took your dark-side steroids.” 

“It doesn’t matter. What has been the fallout from the Grand Inquisitors death?”

“Almost nothing, apparently a lot of people wanted him dead. The other Inquisitors aren't complaining and the Emperor doesn’t seem to care. No one’s concerned much about the girl either. Except her parents, the academy is fielding a lot of calls about her missing status.” 

“I see.” Vader sighed to himself. Of course her parents would be frantic. It was only sensible. 

“I’ve also got information from Kallus about Prince Luke.” He waited, not taking his eyes off the purple and silver gown beneath the skylight. “He’s been sneaking out. He caught him by accident one night down at the illegal race tracks.” 

“What!” 

“Yep, he’s been racing and betting on racing; made a good fortune in both. He’s also been pulling low-level scams on officials and particularly dumb captains and guards. Kallus hasn’t seen all of them but we think Luke’s up to something. “

“Perhaps Luke singled me out as much as I singled him out.” That was a disturbing thought. If Luke was leveraging for power directly from him… “That is concerning. I will have to put a stop to it.” 

“Right.” Tove didn’t answer but she shrugged and didn’t envy the little thief. “The.”

“Gentleman?” Tove and Vader turned to see Dhara sticking her head through the doorway and looking unsure. “Um…” 

“Yes.”

“Um, can I talk to you?” She glanced between Tove and Vader, “please?”

“Certainly.” He dismissed Tove with a wave. The woman seemed happy to leave. “What is it?”

“Um, sir…” Dhara shuffled and took several minute to distract herself by staring at the various designs around the room. “What is all this?”

“I have a fashion show in two weeks and three days.” 

“A fashion show? I…that’s interesting. Where.” 

“Dhara, you are stalling. You do not need to be afraid of me.” 

“I…. I was hoping that I could leave.” She kicked at the sewing machine stand. “Um…I’d come back but I’m just really sick of sitting around the house. I mean, it is beautiful and there’s so many book to read and I really love the gardens but I…need some air.” 

“You mean that his house feels like a gilded cage?” 

“Yeah?” Now embarrassed, Dhara looked away. “I really appreciate all the help you’ve given me but I really need some space.” 

“I see.” He did see and he did understand. “Dhara, if you can manage to disguise yourself and if you accept a false ID then I we may enroll you in a local school.” She stared. “You must continue your education and it is unhealthy to be isolated for extended periods of time.” 

“You mean it?” She squealed. “I can go and stuff?” 

“You must keep your real name a total secret, child. You must not reveal any of the details of my underworld dealings and you cannot, under any circumstances, reveal my or your force sensitivity.” 

“Okay! I can do that!” Her entire face lit up and she nearly began to giggle. “I was just hoping to go out shopping or to go for a walk outside the walls. This is even better!” 

“Yes, I can tell you’re very excited but you must remember that the Empire is actively hunting for you. I you cannot keep this concealed you may be relocated for your safety. This is important, Dhara, do you understand?”

“Yes, yes. I can keep a secret. I can do my hair differently and make-up and I can pick out a different name and everything. I can do it! Please, please! Let me go!” 

“I will have Control prepare a false ID and the necessary paperwork.” Vader promised and nearly fell over when Dhara bounced forward and hugged him around the middle. The limpet squeezed and fell back with an excited grin.

“Thank you so much!” 

“Your welcome.” He might treat a complete stranger more like his child than his actual child. The thought was depressing and a little concerning. Dhara was gone before he could say anything else. 

#$#$# 

“I can’t believe that you’re not going to let me see the dress before you go to the ball!” Luke exclaimed. “Mom!” 

“Luke, it was a fitting. Not the ball itself. I’ll let you see it right before I go.” Jifus emerged from her closet wearing some brightly patterned scrubs and frowned at her son. “Luke, get your feet off my bed.” 

Luke shifted a bit until his boots hung over the side but he didn’t sit up. “Did you at least like it?”

“I liked it! Luke, what are you so worried about?”

“It’s your first date with Father, I want it to go well. He’s never seen you all dressed up and fancy! You’ve never been with him for a date!”

“My wedding didn’t count?”

“No,” he snorted and crossed his arms over his chest. “That was an ugly dress. You looked bored.” 

“I was.” 

“So! It has to go well! You have to look like a goddess! Do you have good matching jewelry?” 

“Jewelry? Luke, where did you learn all this stuff?”

“I’m well-traveled. Does it look good? Is it tasteful? It isn’t hideous is it? If it isn’t then I’m going to kick the designer right in the.” 

“Luke!” The amused tone turned scolding and Luke pouted. 

“I’m just saying. After all the effort that father put into finding someone to make you a gown then it has to be the best gown.” 

“It is very nice. I feel amazing in it.” She fell onto the bed, resting her arms under her and her face parallel to Luke’s. “Luke, I do look good and I have very nice and obscenely expensive jewelry to go with it. Like…crazy expensive jewelry.”

“Fine,” he looked over at her, “the best?”

“Yes and the staff was wonderful. I’m going to kiss this fellow straight on the mouth when I get of hold of him. I look amazing and I promise that you’ll get to see me when I’m all gussied up, alright.” 

“Alright.” He didn’t stop pouting. 

“Your father will be back tonight. We’ll spend some time with him.” 

“I’m supposed to go to bed on time, remember. Last time I tried to stay up late he tucked me in. It was embarssing. I’m 13! I shouldn’t be getting tucked into bed.” 

“You don’t complain when I do it.” 

“That’s because you’re my mom!” 

“Why is different when you father does it? “

“Cause he’s…” 

“Darth Kriffing Vader?” 

“Yeah.” 

“He cares about you Luke,” Jifus smoothed down his hair and kissed his forehead. “Good habits start when you’re young. Do you know how many children your age to 22 don’t get the right amount of sleep for healthy growing?” 

“Too many?”

“Exactly.”

“Hypocrite.” 

“I know.” She rose to her feet, “are you and Ryoo going to go hang out tonight when she gets back from class?”

“She wants to go see that new nature film. It’s about the lakes of Naboo. She wants me to see it.” 

“Don’t get too bored.”

“I like nature films.” 

“Alright, someone has to.” 

“We make a film every week.” Luke reminded her, “and the last blockbuster was a complete bust. It sucked.” 

“I heard all about that.” Jifus vanished into the closet again. “You told me every detail. Why you hated. What was wrong with it and what terrible actors were in it.” 

“Not all the actors were bad! Wynssa Starflare was really good. I liked her a lot.”

“Yes, yes. It was all bad except Wyyssa Starflare, you liked her.”

“A lot.” Luke grinned and his mother scoffed. 

“Luke, have you even touched that book I gave you?”

“Um.” He fiddled with his fingers and shrugged. The smooth bedspread moved beneath his shoulders. 

“You haven’t?” She looked a little surprised and a little offended. Luke looked away. 

“Not yet.” 

“Okay, take your time. I guess fairy tales aren’t for everyone.” 

“I want to read them!” Luke sat up quickly. “I like fairy tales! I just don’t…know.”

“Luke? Do you need.” 

“I’m gonna go.” Luke said quickly and ran from her room. His mother stared at the door, confused. When he scrambled up the stairs into his room, he kicked at the door, growling. 

“Luke?” 

“Go away.” Luke kicked at the door again and whirled on the blue ghost in the middle of his room. “I don’t want to talk to you.” 

“Luke, you’re distressed. I can sense it. What’s wrong.”

“Nothing!” 

“Luke.” The blond sat down beside his door and buried his head in his arms. “Luke?” 

“I don’t understand.” He admitted after a few moments. “I don’t understand how I feel. I know others and their emotions and what makes them feel things but I don’t know how I feel. I don’t want to.” 

“What happened?” 

“Like you don’t watch me all the time.” 

“Luke, I don’t.” The tall ghost settled onto the ground next to Luke, “I come when I feel your emotions lash out and you seen in distress. What happened?” 

“My mom gave me a book.” Luke gestured to the data chip that was still sitting where he’d left it almost two weeks ago. “It’s all the fairy tales from her homeworld. She told me about her family…my family. She showed me pictures of the world and she started teaching me the basics to the language and I just…can’t.” 

“Can’t what?”

“I don’t want it.” Luke stared at his hands. “I don’t want to do it. I’m afraid to read it. I’m so scared.” 

“Of what.” Qui-Gon Jinn set a ghostly hand on his knees. “Luke.” 

“I already lost everything. I don’t even know where I’m from. What if I have a life that I can’t remember and it was special and it had a history and a family. My home and my parents.” He wasn’t looking up to see Jinn’s face turn into a deep and apologetic frown. “I’m scared that if I start taking that then I’m just going to write over everything else that I’m supposed to know or knew.” 

“Luke.”

“I’d never really thought about it before. I mean, I used to have something. I’m sure I did before the Nightmare Man. I just…I didn’t even think about this. It’s supposed to be permanent. I’m going to have them as my parents.” 

“Luke.” 

“Go away.” The blond stared at his hands, flexing them occasionally. “I don’t like you.” 

“I am here to help.” 

“Then what do I do? Huh, what’s the thing that will fix all of it?”

“There is no one thing that will make this better. For help you should turn to your mother or your father. Tell him the truth. Tell him about the man from your dreams. He will help.”

“No he won’t. I don’t even think he likes me. He does what he’s supposed to but there’s no warmth. Not like mom.”

“If you tell him you may be surprised.” 

“I don’t get it. If he’s my father then why doesn’t he act more like it? How come he doesn’t do all the other stuff that father’s do and don’t tell me anything. I don’t want to hear excuses for him.” 

“Very well. I’ll be here if you want me to be.” Qui-Gon bowed and vanished. Luke grumbled to himself and he ducked his head down again. 

“I wish I knew who I was. I wish I knew.” 

“Luke?” He jolted as his mother knocked on the door. “Luke?” 

“I’m coming!” He scrambled up and opened the door. “Um…” 

“Are you alright?” She was dressed for the operating room. Her surgery schedule had lightened considerably in the last few weeks but there were still instances when an expert was needed. Luke felt bad for making her worry. 

“Yeah. I’m okay. I just…I’m okay.” He hoped that that would be the end and that she’d turn around and walk away. It wasn’t.

“Luke,” she wrapped her arms around her torso and shook her head, “no you’re not. Something’s got you upset.”

“So?”

“So?” She rocked back and forth on her feet and eventually sighed. “Do you want to talk about it?” 

“No.” 

“Oh.” At a loss, she was quiet a little longer. 

“I’ll tell you about it one day but I’ve got to figure how I feel first.” Luke scuffed at the floor and willed his mother to leave.

“Alright but you do know that your father and I are going to help you, right?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Okay,” she nodded some more and awkwardly left his room. Luke comforted himself with the thought that she’d at least tried. It wasn’t her fault that Luke refused to talk about it. 

#$#$#

“I’m pretty sure my son hates me.” Doctor Ayden glanced over to Lady Vader to see her enormous mug cover her face as she lifted it to sip at the boiling liquid in it. 

“Really?” His attention was less focused on her words and more on the cheerfully dark message ‘It has been ____ days since I killed someone’ that was printed on the side of her caf mug. “What is that?” 

“Family Day present from Luke.” She smiled ruefully. “He got a matching set for K…the Sith and me. I put the other one on his desk, he’ll see it when he gets back tonight. What do you think?” 

“It’s dark.” Ayden blinked and chuffed out a quiet laugh. “I have to admire his sense of humor, if nothing else.” 

“I laughed so hard I cried. It’s a good present, a little dark, but it fits.” 

“What is this about him hating you?”

“He doesn’t want to talk. Something’s wrong and he doesn’t want to talk. I mean, I’m not the great with emotional connection after so many years of professional detachment. I am trying but he doesn’t want to talk to me.” 

“He doesn’t hate you.” 

“You’ve never met him.” 

“No.” Ayden gulped down his lukewarm caf. “Perhaps he’s just concerned because he’s realizing what sort of a life he’s going to be living. You introduced your heritage to him, wanting to share it. Maybe that freaked him out.”

“I thought he’d want it.” Her face was morose, “he liked the watch at least. I can’t wait until the Sith gets back and we can discuss it.” 

“You call him the Sith?” It would be inappropriate for him to try and dig up information on his commander. Gossiping with his wife probably counted. Still, he was curious. 

“Only in public.” She winked at him. Ayden blushed, “call him a lot of other things in private.” 

“I…um.” He floundered. 

“Sure,” her voice turned sultry. She shifted enough that Ayden was suddenly hyper-aware of her body. “Say things like…that helmets pretty shiny, want to go scuff it up?” 

“Oh?” Someone had squeaked. It might have been him. After a moment of forced calm, he looked back at Lady Vader to find her pouting. There was a malicious gleam in her eyes. “Um.” 

With a wild roar of laughter that send her limbs flailing about in an attempt to dissipate some of the humor and her body off the chair she’d been carefully balanced on top. Ayden watched the woman laugh herself into breathless silence, so much so he was concerned if she could breathe. 

Not too concerned though; she had played a nasty trick on him. 

“HAHAHAHAHA! Did you see the look on your face? Oh, gods! It was hilarious! It was amazing. You were so,” she made an exaggerated face that Ayden scoffed at, “and then so intrigued and horrified because you were curious. Ooooo! HAHAHAHAHAHA!”

“Thank you for making me feel like a voyeur.” 

“That’s your problem.” Jifus hauled herself back onto her chair, laughing. “Alright, in all seriousness I need to go prep for surgery and I need you to finished your report.” 

“I hope you have to suffer caf stuck in your carpet for the rest of eternity.” Ayden told her. Doctor Jifus waved him off as she left, ignoring him easily.

#$#$#

His usual debrief of the Emperor went well. The man was, for once, that at all occupied with him. His attention was focused on the ball the next night and whatever scheme he’d prepared for the evening. Vader sensed that Tarkin would be the one tested, not him. 

He returned to his house with the anticipation he could spend an evening decompressing from the stress of fashion work and the Emperor. 

He returned to find the entire building empty. Except for Deno. 

Deno was sitting in the kitchen, eating an entire trifle, and watching re-runs of Ryloth’s most popular daytime drama. 

“Where is my wife and son?” Deno jumped at his shout, turning around and nearly upending the bowl of cream and fruit. 

“Lord Vader!” Exclaimed, “What a surprise!” 

“I am sure.” He groused, “where is the lady and the prince?” 

“Lady Vader is in surgery right now. Well, she might have gotten out of it. Prince Luke and Ryoo are off to see a nature film while Niles is escorting them.”

“I see,” Vader glowered at the screen. “Etno is the father.” 

“WHAT?” Dignity and pride abandoned, Deno whirled around the screen. “There are twenty episodes left! You just spoiled the rest of the season!”

“Good evening.” He ignored the miserable sobbing from his employee and stomped back to his speeder. From his residence he flew to the hospital Jifus attended. He sent several students and nurses and patients scattering as he marched from his ship to the doors. As he stormed into the lobby he was met with a tired looking Jifus who was storming out. 

“What are you doing here?” She asked as patients and nurses tried to melt into the floors and walls. “You’re scaring my co-workers.”

“I have come to retrieve you,” he declared. Jifus’ bushy white eyebrow rose. 

“Really?” She didn’t sound impressed but she shrugged. “Alright.” She picked her way across the lobby, “consider me retrieved.” As she reached his side, Jifus dumped her enormous bag into his arms and sauntered toward the door. “Coming?” 

“Yes,” he walked after her and proceeded to direct her to their ship. “You are here late.” 

“Complications. Legal and physical and so many more. It was a complete mess.” He set her bag in the back passenger seats. “Did you see Deno? Did he make dinner?” 

“When I saw him was occupied with eating an entire trifle and a trashy holo-drama.” 

“Love Against Intelligence?” 

“No, I did not recognize it,” he lied. “Ryloth origin, I believe.” 

“Of course. Guess I’ll just re-heat leftovers. Luke and Ryoo are eating out.” 

“I see.” Tiredness dragged on every limb, enough so that she crawled into the heavily padded seat and feel promptly asleep. Vader considered the woman and then his options. 

He took the scenic route, a flight of over an hour, before he parked and prodded her awake. 

“What is it? We’re back? That was a quick flight.” She woke up groggy but willing. “Where the hells are we?” 

“Dinner.” It was one of the most upscale restaurants on the planet. It catered to Senators, Grand Moffs, and the most elite of the film industry. It was expensive as hells and it had once been his favorite places to eat. It was not tainted with any bittersweet memories of Padme. Only the times he had crashed here with Ahsoka, grabbed food, and then left for the war front.

No one would have ever refused Anakin Skywalker and no one refused Darth Vader. 

“Do we have a reservation?”

“No.” 

“Is it a black-tie sort of place?”

“Yes.”

“Am I going to stick out like twi’lek at an Imperial Academy?” 

“Yes.” 

“Fantastic,” she looked more awake and glanced at the beautiful building, “let's go.” 

“As you wish but wait.” Before she could open her door he was out and around the speeder to open it for her. 

“What was that?” She took his hand and climbed down.

“This place is regularly stalked by paparazzi.” 

“Ah,” she nodded and they linked arms on the walk to the front door. A terrified valet stared at them. “He looks scared.” 

“I parked in the managers parking spot.”

“Why?” 

“Who will penalize me for it?” 

“Are you abusing your power right now?”

“Yes.” Jifus grinned broadly at the valet, “evening, don’t touch the ship.” 

“As you wish, madam.” He gibbered as they walked past him and toward the hostess stand. She pretended not to hear the horrified hush that fell over the room as they entered. The hostess, sensing something amiss, looked up from her books and glanced around. When her eyes settled on the pair, her expression faltered for only a second. 

“Good evening.” Vader admired her acting ability and her calm. The other servers were all standing around, frozen and staring. “The private dining room.” 

“Of course,” she smiled, her bright white teeth offset against her purple skin. “Would you like to check your coats?” 

“Only if you’ve got a sanitized bag to stick mine in. This blood is pretty fresh.” 

“Of course,” the hostess, whose nametag read Dolly, accepted her lab coat. Once it had been set in a clean garment back and hung up she smiled again, “please follow me,” she picked up two menus and led them through the now silent restaurant. 

Jifus, after years of experience and a general lack of concern for public opinion, didn’t seem to notice. Vader did. He could see two Moffs, several of his Admirals on dates that were not their spouses, and the recognizable profile of Wynssa Starflare. As soon as they were sequestered behind the security curtain, the dining room broke out into shocked whispers. 

When Jifus moved ahead of him toward the table, Vader pulled the hostess to his side. She seized up, terrified. “Ensure that a tasting menu is not offered nor will our server suggest any alcohol.”

“Of course.” He would have to hire her. Her calm was enviable and absolutely better than any of his Grand Admirals or Admirals. She scurried from the room and Vader watched Jifus glance around the dining room. 

“This place is beautiful.” She admitted, “How much is this going to cost us?” 

“A lot.” Vader admitted as he took his seat. “Still, the fate of cold food for dinner is not one for my wife.” 

“I would have heated it up.” 

“You would not have. I have seen you do this before. No one is supposed to eat naasa cold.” 

“I have.” 

“I know.” She stared at the several wine-glasses and then at the bright silver goblet. “I have no idea what to get. I haven’t eaten anywhere this fancy in years.” 

“My apologies.”

“Hmm.” She opened her menu and frowned. “What the hell is this?” 

“What?” He copied her motion and glanced at the menu. “This is ridiculous.” 

“I don’t recognize half of these dishes.” 

“These must be designed for the influx of idiots this place has suffered.” He hadn’t even considered that the place might have changed in the last decade. Perhaps his favorite chef didn’t work here any longer. 

“Hi!” A handsome man walked into the room, smiling. 

“Fetch the hostess.” Vader ordered shortly. The man did an about-face that would make a drill instructor weep from joy. The twi’lek hurried into the room just seconds later. 

“What can I do for you?” 

“Does Chef Dissa still work here?” 

“Yes, sir.” 

“Hmm,” Vader flipped through the menu, “I see that he has taken to pandering to fools.” 

“Husband.” Jifus ran her hand over her face, embarrassed. 

“Well,” the woman hesitated. Vader pounced. 

“Yes?” She faltered. 

“The owner decided to have the menu changed about five years ago. A complete turnaround.” 

“Which explains why none of Chef Dissa’ specials are on the menu.” He ignored the confused glances from both women. “It is no longer on the menu but Dissa will remember how to make it.” 

“What?” 

“Cushnip.”

“Cushnip? Last time I had that I was at…somewhere.” Jifus shrugged and didn’t explain. Vader took that as an indicator that she’d been breaking the law at some point. “Sounds good.” 

“What would you like to drink, milady?” 

“Hmm,” she frowned at the tiny letter and fished her glasses from her pocket, “let's go with the Io juice on ice.”

“Of course, would you like to keep your menus?” 

“Yes.” Dolly excused herself and rushed back to the kitchen where the entire staff was having a panic. “Everyone calm down.” She slapped the order in front of the chef. “They want cushnip.” 

“Cushnip?” Dissa frowned, “I haven’t made that in years. It’s not even on the menu.” 

“I know.” Dolly said, “I know. Lord Vader wanted to know who made the food! He asked for you by name!” Every other dishwasher, cook, and server froze. Dissa swallowed hard. “He hates the menu.” 

“He what?” The manager came scrambling into the kitchen. “What does Lord Vader want?” 

“Cushnip.” Dissa said, turning to make the dough with his spare set of hands. 

“That’s not on the menu,” the manager gulped, he turned to Dolly. “Is he happy? Are they taken care of.” 

“He hates the menu.” Dolly reported. “He thinks it ridiculous and Lady Vader is. Stars, she’s got blood on her scrubs!” 

“She’s a doctor,” someone added and Dolly shrugged. 

“Dolly,” he took several deep breath, “I’ll be hostess for you for tonight. Take care of them. Just…take care of them. Make sure they get everything they want. You serve them tonight. I want them to leave happy and happier.” 

“Of course,” Dolly rubbed her eyes. “I’ll wait their table. Lo, get that drink ready. Ice-cold with crushed ice.” 

“The Tarkins have a table tonight.” The manager looked like he was going to rip his hair out. “They hate each other.” 

“We’ll keep them separate,” Dolly promised as the delicate glass was set on the tray with a complimentary appetizer of slow roasted slices of shaak steak that were covered in vegetables and next to a bowl of gravy. “That looks fantastic. Dissa, you can do this right?” 

“Of course.” He looked shell-shocked and frightened. “Make sure they’re happy.” 

“Right,” Dolly lifted the tray up and nodded at the assembled servers, “Everyone, back to your tables. We’ll gossip when we’re closed.” They scattered and Dolly returned to the dining room to find the couple staring at an assembled pile of listening devices. 

“Interesting décor.” Lord Vader rumbled. Dolly’s smile was strained. She hadn’t even known that those were in here but it did make sense. 

“My apologies, sir.” She set the glass before the doctor and took up every glassware meant alcohol on the table. A moment later she set the appetizer down. “Compliments of the chef, milady.” 

“Ohhh, this looks good.” Dolly sighed to herself in relief. 

“The chef apologizes, there may be a wait on the cushnip.” 

“Of course,” Dolly felt some of her fear melt away when Lady Vader smiled so easily. “I know we’re dumping something unexpected on him, tell me, what do you suggest for the side dishes?” 

#$#$#

Soontir Fel returned from his short trip to the refresher and found the dining room almost silent saved for the general air of gossip and intrigue. Even the servers, accustomed and trained to ignore whatever was going on, were whispering to each other. 

“What happened while I was gone?” He slid back into his booth with his girlfriend. She graced him with a lovely smile. 

“Lord and Lady Vader just came in.” Wynssa said and he almost choked on his drink of wine. 

“What?” 

“Yes, they came in and got one of the private dining rooms. I think the staff is panicked.” He glanced around and fingered the small box in his pocket. 

“They do look concerned.” 

“I know.” Wynssa beamed, “the hostess is serving him. When one of the regular servers went in he came back out so fast he could have teleported.” 

“The hostess?” The twi’lek hostess. He had never really seen evidence of xenophobia from Lord Vader but that didn’t mean there wasn’t lingering dislike for them. He knew the upper-crust of the Empire had anti-aliens sentiments. 

“I hope they have an enjoyable date,” Wynssa said, her eyes focused on the dining room separated by a heavy curtain. “Can you believe it? She walked in in scrubs. We reserved this table months ago and I had to break out my favorite gown.” 

“Oh?”

“I think I can’t go back to this designer though,” she pouted at him.   
“Why not?” 

“Well, Lord Vader went in there and I think he was looking for a gown for his wife. He didn’t find anything and he stormed right out. I don’t know who he got to do the gown on such short notice but if this fellow isn’t good enough for Lady Vader then.” She sighed and Soontir felt his pocketbook scream in horror. “I might find someone new and fresh.”

“Of course, do you have a gown for the ball tomorrow night?”

“Of course, a beautiful one.” She winked at him. He felt his heart flutter and he smiled back. “Your uniform?” 

“Pressed and cleaned.” 

“Every medal shiny?” 

“Always.” He ducked his head as he laughed. Somehow, after all he’d done and seen, this woman managed to reduce him to a bright blush and a smile. He loved her for it. 

#$#$#

“This is delicious.” Jifus reported as she cut the last bite of appetizer and dipped it in gravy. “I like this chef.” 

“He is excellent.” Vader agreed. “What have you accomplished in two weeks?” 

“Not much.” She chewed on her steak slivers, “not much at all. You?” 

“My communion with the dark side has replenished my powers.” He said, feeling a ghost of a blush across his cheeks. Jifus rolled her eyes. 

“Alright, alright. Forget I asked.” 

“How is Luke?” 

“Fine.” She took a sip of juice and sighed happily. “That is fantastic. I gave him a pocket watch. The sort that every Piett gets when we’re old enough to use them. He…like it but after that he seemed reluctant to learn anything. I tried to teach him about Axilla and its history, the language, plus a book of the planets fairy tales. Zilch, not interested. Well, no, he seems extremely reluctant to read them. I guess I shouldn’t say that he’s not interested.” 

“It does seem odd. What was his reaction to your family?” 

“I just told him about my brother.” 

“Which one?” 

“The only one that’s alive.” She toyed with the empty plate, “I have no idea how to tell him about the rest of them.” 

“I am sure that you will come to a solution.” Vader intoned. Dolly reappeared with several tiny trays of fruits and meats.

“Fantastic.” Jifus turned from him to the other woman, “food is always good.” 

“It’s been a busy day, I bet.” Dolly smiled and set the tray out in front of the doctor. 

“A very busy day, your chef is very good. I loved those little steak bites and the vegetables. Delicious.”

“I’ll let him know, would you like a refill on your drink?” 

“Yes.” Jifus beamed at her husband as the woman poured from a frosted pitcher. “When can I expect the cushnip.” 

“About ten minutes, my lady.” 

“Fantastic.”

Vader remained blessedly silent but his ever-hissing respirator made Dolly shiver in fear. If she made a single mistake it was possible that he’d kill her and be done with it. Well, maybe not. So far he seemed calm and even polite. It didn’t escape her notice that both of them tended to stop talking every time she entered. That was odd, usually the guests spoke and ignored her. She’d managed to get a fantastic amount of blackmail information that way. She appreciated the effort. 

Once she was gone, Jifus turned to her husband. 

“Kit, I see why you didn’t hire this guy. If you did I would have grown to five times my already big size. Look at me. I’d be one of those dumplings.” 

The table wasn’t too big, not large enough for their hands to be out of reach of each other. Vader reached over and clasped her hand unoccupied hand. “A very skilled dumpling.” 

She grinned, halfway blushing and halfway scowling, “Yes, very skilled dumpling but not a very smart one if I let myself go that much.” 

“Perhaps.” 

“Besides, I have a very, very nice gown that I need to be able to fit into tomorrow.” 

“The gown can be altered. I do not ever think it wise to alter ones self simply for a garment.” Padme had done it though. “Do you like it?” 

“I love it. You should see the sparkly stuff that goes with it.” 

“Indeed?”

“It is very…fine. Lost of sparkles. I mean…have you seen it?” He hesitated. “Nevermind, I’ll just wait to see if you like it later. Luke was furious I didn’t take him with me to get the dress fitted. He wanted to see it first.” 

“He may yet be granted his desire. I have several meetings in the Senate Dome tomorrow that I cannot avoid attending.” 

“Ouch,” she drank, “that’s rough.” 

“I ought to be finished about the time the ridiculous waste of expense is beginning.”

“I don’t have any operations tomorrow. Working from the residence and getting party ready. Going to be a real blast.” 

“Your sarcasm is strong.” 

“Always. Who are you meeting with tomorrow?” 

“Senator Organa, Chuchi, and several others.”

“Hmm,” she leaned back in her chair and toyed with her fork. “Be nice to Organa. I realize that it might be difficult but he’s not doing so well right now.” 

“I will consider it.” Jifus rolled her eyes just as the hostess returned. 

“Food! More food. Fantastic!” 

Even having Tarkin and his obnoxious wife was not enough of a deterrent of the overall air of cheer of the restaurant staff. Dolly reported back to the kitchen that Lady Vader was enjoying her meal. That Lord Vader was as polite as polite could be; nothing to be done about his general air of scary. Then that both were lingering in conversation over the various dishes that Chef Dissa kept sending out in minuscule quantities. They were the size and quantities of small snack packages bought at refueling stations but with hundreds of times the flavor. 

When the couple finally left nearly two hours after arriving, most of the dining room was empty of guests. Since they had pretty much fled as soon as they were finished eating and paid their bill. Grand Moff Tarkin was none the wiser of the Vader’s presence.

As soon as the busers came to clear the table, Dolly nearly fell over in shock. 

“What?” The manager leaned over her and she turned the bill amount and then how much Lord Vader had written for a tip while the lady had been putting on her lab coat. He gaped and then buried his head in his hands. “What the crap?” 

“That’s a big tip.” She mused.

“Were they good? Did they like the food?” In the still messy kitchen the staff clustered around her.

“She loved the food. It looked like she had a great time. I think this was a surprise date.”

“If anyone told me I’d be making for Lord Vader’s wife dinner then I’d laugh at you.” Chef Dissa moped his sweaty brow with a set of shaking hands while his other pair began to wring a towel between them. 

“Is anyone else wonder why Vader was here? Like…dude was on a date. Doesn’t that seem like…we’ve fallen into an alternate dimension.” 

“If we have then I like this one.” Dolly admired her tip. “I hope he comes back.” 

“Did anyone else hear the rumor tht he sends letters to his wife when he’s away?” A server asked. There was a chorus of agreement. “How crazy is that? Hell, I don’t know anyone who does that.”

#$#$#

“I get to sleep in tomorrow.” Jifus observed just as Vader guided the ship into its hanger position. 

“How fortunate.” 

“It is pretty great. How is tomorrow going to work?”

“Did you not receive the message from Vato Studios?”

“Message?” 

“Of the timetable for tomorrow.” 

“Ah…no. I’ll take a look. Are Luke and Ryoo back from their show?”

“Yes.” 

They found the pair of teenagers in the living room, arguing over a question on Ryoo’s study sheet. 

“I hope you both had fun.” Jifus said. Luke looked up, beaming. Ryoo shrugged. 

“Where have you been? You were due home hours and hours ago?” He all but tackled his mother with a hug. “Mom?”

“We were at dinner.” The Sith intoned. Ryoo snorted and tried to turn it into a cough. Luke’s grin widened. 

“You were one a date!” 

“You can call it that.” Jifus shrugged and glanced over to her husband. “Kit left a large enough tip to make up for not scheduling a reservation.” 

“Did you bring home any left-overs?” Luke finally detached himself. 

“I ate all of it. It was fantastic. Sorry.” 

“Did you guys have fun?” Luke tucked himself under one arm, glancing up at his mother. Vader crossed his arms but didn’t make an exit. “What did you talk about?”

“Kit,” Jifus tightened her arm around Luke’s shoulder, “do you think it’s time for Luke to go to bed? I think it’s a little late for the kid to be up.” 

“Oh, come on. I’m just wondering if you had a good time.” He tried to pull free, only for his mother’s grip to clamp him against her side. “NO!” 

“Good luck, Luke.” Ryoo waved at him, “I’m going to bed before anything happens to me.” 

 

“RYOO! HELP!” 

Jifus laughed over him and jerked her head for Vader to come and cross the room. He obliged and hoisted the squawking teenager into the air and tucked him under his arm. 

“PAPA!”Luke wriggled madly. He didn’t notice how his mother and father exchanged a look or how Vader seemed to still a little. “Put me down!” 

“I think not.” Vader adjusted his grip on Luke until the boy was resting in one arm, upright. Almost how a child would carry a doll. 

“How was the film?”

“It was great! I had no idea that Naboo was so beautiful! It was fantastic! They had some really good shots in it too. Like how the camera would pan out over the lake. Plus, Naboo has tons of monsters and stuff that live in their waters. They were scary.” 

“Such a pretty planet, always be wary of those. You never know what lurks beneath it.” Jifus nodded in agreement as they moved toward Luke’s room. 

“It is safe and logical to assume you have indulged in food masquerading as food?” 

“Erm,” Luke shrugged and then nodded. “Yep. It was delicious. I have no regrets.” 

“You will if you suffer from food poisoning in the next few hours.” Vader replied. 

“I’ll live with it. On a different note,” Luke excitedly smacked his father’s armor. “I got you a life day present. Put me down so I can go get it.” 

“Very well.” Vader let Luke down, ignoring the smug grin on his wifes face as Luke ran from them hallway and toward his room. “What is it?” 

“Papa.” She poked his side, “he called you Papa. That’s a good sign.”

“It may be. I had thought he would stick with Father.” 

“I did too but he settled for Papa, how cute.” 

“Hmm.” 

“This is a good sign. Our doctor said that things like this are a sign that he’s feeling more comfortable around us. Even if he did go back to calling you Father. That’s okay, this is progress.” 

“True. Even as unpleasant as Ryoo’s forced stay here is, she is at least kept in constant company and provides certain companionship to Luke.” 

“And visa versa. This is good. Progress, Kit.” 

“Agreed.” With deliberate care, he caught her swinging hand. She stared as he lifted it to his chest, close to the base of his mask as if he would kiss her knuckles. “Two weeks seemed an eternity.”

“It was a while and you didn’t write any letters.” Jifus was angling for bland and unconcerned but the faint blush across her nose and ears spoke the opposite. 

“Communing with the dark side makes it near impossible. Lava would have burnt the paper.” 

“Lava?” 

“Yes.” 

“Ah. I suppose you had your fill of Sith Juice?” 

“As much caf as you’ve drunk in the last two weeks.” 

“Then you have a serious dark side problem,” she grinned. “Luke is very proud of the present his got you. Well, it has two parts. The second part is on your desk, it’s a matching set.” 

“Set?” 

“I got one.” He didn’t quite trust the devious expression on her face and released her hand just as Luke came careening down the stairs with a carefully wrapped box. 

“I got it!” He exclaimed, sliding to stop before his parents and thrusting the box at the Sith. “Open it.” 

Unsure and a little surprised, he carefully undid the wrapping and opened the box. For it he produced a model of the SD Devastator, his current flagship. Its stand was about five inches tall and the ship was about the length of his forearm. It looked well-made and as if Luke had put significant effort into it. 

“You can put that in your office if you want.” Luke grinned, “if you want.” 

“Well done, Luke.” He set a hand on Luke’s shoulder, squeezing gently. 

“Mom got me a pocket watch, one of the really old ones.” Luke held up a thick metal disk and clicked it open. The back was clear glass, showing the minuscule cogs and wheels. The three hands were steady and showed a time that was not the planet they were currently on. 

“Which planet is it marking time for?” 

“Axilla,” Jifus said and pulled a battered pocket watch from her own pocket. The glass on hers was cracked and the second hand was missing. “He can change it to any planet he wants though.” 

It was an extremely expensive gift. Items like this had to be handmade. Vader took Luke’s watch and turned it over. His sons name was engraved on the opposite side with enough room to fit a last name, when Luke got around to picking which one he wanted to use. 

“Family day presents.” Jifus explained when he handed the watch back. 

“I forgot about it until later. Niles helped me picked out the model.” 

“You’re going to like your mug.” Jifus grinned, “want to see it?”

“Yes.” When they reached his office, Vader stared at the heavy mug sitting on his desk and sighed deeply. “You have a cruel sense of humor, son.” He patted Luke’s head, musing his blond hair.

“I thought it was funny.” Luke said. Jifus picked up her own and waved it at him. 

“It has been____days since I’ve killed someone? You don’t think that that is hilarious? I told Dr. Vax that it was a matching set and he nearly had a fit.” 

“I had to order those special.” Luke said. 

Vader mentally wilted as he thought of what Palpatine might say to this sort of mockery. Still, it was a nice gesture. He set the model on his desk and positioned it to be out of the way but in full view of anyone standing in front of it. 

“Did you behave?” Vader asked and Luke shrugged as Jifus barked out a laugh. 

“Yes.” 

“No! He was terrible”

“I was not!” 

“You pretty much were.” 

“No! I wasn’t.” Luke puffed out his chest. “I was fantastic. The best son anyone could ask for.” 

“Don’t contradict your mother,” Vader said absently, “it is time for you to be in bed.” 

Luke shrugged and stuffed his hands in his pockets, affecting a woebegone look. “I know when I’m not wanted.” He kicked at the floor. “I’ll just go then.”

“Good night, Luke.” Jifus kissed the top of his head and Luke scurried out of the room. Once he was gone, she turned to Vader. “I still don’t know why he’s hesitant to take on my…heritage. Do you think he doesn’t want it?” 

“I don’t know.” Vader considered Luke’s amnesia. 

“Maybe he wants the cooler one.” She wrung her hands, “maybe he wants yours.” 

“No.” 

She blinked. “No?” 

“I do not…no.” 

“Alright.” She began to pace around the room. “I’m just getting to so many different signals from him. He wants one thing and then another. Then he wants to be a kid who is taken care but then he looks at me like I’m crazy for offering to help him. Like he doesn’t know how to accept help. Which I understand, but then he doesn’t want me some time and he gets embarrassed for living here. Then he doesn’t talk about himself and the more I think about the medical file I put together the more I worry that Luke’s afraid of me because of the actions of previous guardians.” 

“Luke has amnesia.” Vader said and leaned away when her head snapped around. 

“WHAT?” 

“I have sensed it in the Force on the first night we met.”

“When you gave him the blanket?”

“He only remembers three years of his life.” A stain of rage and insulted pride blossomed from the base of her neck and crawled upward until her whole face was red. “I do not believe it was physical damage that may have erased or sealed his memories. But as a matter of self-preservation; Luke was responsible.” 

“You…” she took a deep breath. “When were you planning on telling me this? Were you going to tell me at all? Ever? Or am I supposed to sit here in the dark? Eh?”

“It was not my intention to deceive you. Luke has not told either of us of his amnesia.”

“I don’t!” Outraged, her hands dug into her hair and she took deep breaths, trying to remain calm. 

“You’re angry.” 

“Of course I’m angry,” she yelled. “This is important news. How did we not know this? Why isn’t in his files?” 

“I do not think anyone knows except Luke. “

“How can I help him I don’t know?” 

“I don’t know.” Vader remained very still while Jifus paced and cursed. Not angry at Luke but definitely furious at someone. Perhaps just angry at the circumstances. She eventually slowed down and then rubbed her temples. 

“What do we do. We have to talk about this.” 

“He may not wish to discuss it.” 

“At some point we will need to talk about it. If we don’t we’ll do more damage than help. He needs to know that he can trust us. Communication is paramount.” She smacked a fist into an open palm. “Alright, amnesia. I’ll have to go read up on it. I haven’t dealt with an amnesia patient in ages. We’ll have to work out a strategy.”

“As you wish.” 

She stared at him, “I’m angry you didn’t tell me sooner.” 

“I apologize…I was…unsure how to raise the topic.”

“Communication, Kit. Communication. Very important.” Both reflected on the lies and secrets they held. Some too big to share with a party they were unsure could be trusted with such information. Jifus felt like a hypocrite for stressing communication when she had a double life. 

“As you wish.” Vader considered asking her to stay and speak but she looked too tired. “Perhaps you should sleep as well, we will be spending most of tomorrow suffering the arrogance and irritating presence of the Imperial Court.” 

“That’s true,” JIfus yawned and then shrugged. “But before I do that, I am going to take a very long and very hot bath.” 

“Very well. You will not see me in the morning. I will occupied with the senate until the…ball begins.” 

“See you there, then. Will you make sure Luke’s in bed. I’ve been hearing him wandering around the house after hours. I think insomnia and nightmares but I’m not sure.” 

“I will.” He promised. As Jifus left he heard her mutter under her breath. 

“Amnesia, honestly.” 

#$#$#

As much time as he spent around Darth Vader, there was still a part of Luke’s brain that refused to acknowledge him as a parent. That part saw him as a threat, an enemy, and a target. The rest of his brain told it to shut and to stop cataloging how much he could get for his father’s ships and tools. Because it was still odd to see Darth Vader doing normal things, like talking to his wife. Like discussing the budget for food with the cook, or explaining to Luke why he wasn’t supposed to take power tools into his room for midnight work. 

“Luke.” He had to readjust to the hissing respirator each time his father came back, reminding himself it was only background noise and telling himself he wasn’t supposed to be afraid of it. Other people could be afraid…not him. 

“Yeah.” He hoped the man hadn’t noticed the truly childish name that he’d used by complete accident earlier 

“May I come in?”

“Oh.” He stared at the door and pressed the release. His heart skipped a beat and the man seemed to notice it. Luke stepped aside and his father walked in. There was a thick mug in his left hand. “Um, what’s up?” It was so odd, no matter how many times it had happened, to see his father standing in the middle of his semi-messy room was a jolt. Luke tried to make it look lived in and comfortable, always left a bit of a mess on the floor. Some book files not stored right, a game out, a towel on the chair, his bed messy. 

“Have you been well?” 

“I guess.” Luke sat on the side of his bed and watched the man do a slow turn, inspecting the mess. Vader held out the mug. “What’s that?” 

“A drink.”

“Yeah, but what is it?” 

“Milk.”

“I’ll have you know that I’m not a six year old. I am old enough to get myself a glass of water for bed and everything.” 

“You may be.” Luke finally stood up to take the drink and grumbling, sat back down on his bed. He stared at the contents. It was blue milk, warm with some spices floating on the top. It tasted delicous and Luke had to struggle to not drink the entire cup in one gulp. “Your uniforms have come in.” Through the open closet door they both could see the matching set of a academy uniforms. They were less militaristic and a little more of the old styles. 

“Yesterday. Um…they fit just fine too.” An awkward pause later, Vader moved and took the single armchair in the room. It was enormous and designed to hold extra weight, specifically for his father’s use. Luke preferred it because he could curl up on it and take comfortable naps. “How was your trip?” 

“Acceptable.”

“Oh.” 

“You have been having nightmares.” 

Luke felt every bit of breath leave his body. He stared at the Sith and then down at his drink. He wasn’t sure what to say. “So?” 

“We are concerned that you have not been getting enough rest.”

“I’m fine.” He took another drink. “I get them sometimes.” 

“Do you need my assistance.” 

“No.” 

“Are you prepared for you first day of class?” Luke shrugged at him and stared down at the blue milk.

“My stuff is all packed and ready to go. I’m just waiting for me to go. I’ve gotten all my shots and vaccinations. Niles thinks I’m a really good dancer. Um, Deno is trying to teach me some more about cooking. Mom’s given me some book on the culture and life of Axilla so I can start…learning. Where did you learn how to write in Axxilian?” 

“I learned many years ago. It is one of the dominate languages among pirates.”

“You used to hang out with pirates?”

“Hunt them, as your Grandmother does and your uncle does.” 

“Wow. Did you ever hunt a pirate named Hondo Ohnaka.” Vader froze, Luke didn’t notice. “I have, by accident. He’s really strange. I mean he is super strange.” 

“How did you manage to meet him?”

“Um.” Luke stared and tried to come it with a lie that would fit in with his backstory. Academy stormtroopers didn’t meet drunk pirate by accident. “Err…well. It’s a long story.” 

“I am sure it is.” Luke flushed and occupied himself with the milk. After a few minutes of silence, he yawned and shook his head. “What is in this?” 

“It is warmed milk with seasonings to help you sleep.”

“Drugs?” Luke glared at him and then at his cup. 

“No, natural sedatives. On an adult they would only calm, on a child they will function as a sleep aid.” 

“I’m not.” 

“You are a child, whether you believe it or not. As your father it is my duty to help when you require it. When you have difficulty sleeping this is a healthy and often used alternative to drugs. I did not think you wanted them.” 

“I don’t but this is…I guess it’s okay. It taste good at least.”

“You may thank Deno in the morning.” 

“Right.” Luke drummed his heels on the side of his bed. “I knows it odd to ask but did you have fun on your date with Mom?” 

“She enjoyed herself.” 

“Did you have fun? I know mom said she had a great time but did you have fun?” 

“Luke.”

“Can’t blame me.” 

“Go to bed, son.” Vader said finally. Luke drained the last of his milk and set the cup aside. 

“I can get into bed on my own, you know. I’ve done it before.” Luke pressed his hands on his hips and diddn’t move.

“A demonstration of such skill would be appreciated.” Vader didn’t move from his seat. 

“Father.” Luke smacked his face, “seriously?”

“A precaution of sorts.” 

“Paranoia is more like it.” 

“Luke.” 

“Fine!” He huffed, trying to ignore how pink his face was. He yanked back the blankets and scrambled underneath them until he covered completely. He glowered at the dark blankets above him and then at his father’s mask as the Sith pulled back the blankets. In the strange moments that followed, Vader adjusting the blankets until they were at a proper position and his stuff nerf was set beside his shoulder, he spoke. 

“I would not object if you wished to address me as…Papa.” Luke’s face was deep red and he was staring at the window at the Coruscant skyline. “In private, of course.”

“Of course.” Luke croaked. 

“Luke.”

“I was hoping you wouldn’t notice.” 

“I did.”

“That’s.” He bunched the blanket up in his fists and nodded despite his red face. “Okay.” 

“Goodnight, son.” Vader gently smoothed back his hair and moved toward the door. 

Just as the closed behind he heard a faint, “Goodnight, Papa.” When the door shut, Vader smiled to himself despite the scars. 

#$#$#

In his room, Luke stared at the ceiling where he’d attached glow in the dark stars and tried to not combust from embarrassment. 

The slip had been an accident. He hadn’t meant it. He’d just….he did mean it. What was better was that his father didn’t seem to mind. The terrifying Sith Lord who made common soldiers cry from his mere presence, the man who could make full Admirals cringe back in horror. The living nightmare of the rebellion. 

It was hard to reconcile the man who tucked him in with the man he was away from home. 

Luke wondered if he’d ever be comfortable with the Sith. If he’d ever be comfortable as the prince. If he’d want to go back to the streets. 

Well. For now he was alright. Nothing hurt, he wasn’t hungry, and he’d managed to expose a good number of corrupt officers in the last two weeks. 

Luke watched the speeder lines outside the window, yawning. As much as he missed Gohan and the rest of his crew he was glad he was here. 

With parents. Like the ones he’d dreamed of and wanted for so long. Like the people of the stories he used to read. 

Someone to take care of him for once, even though was afraid of such a thing. 

Any problem he had could wait until tomorrow. 

He rolled over, away from the window, and drifted off. 

#$#$#

He was out of the residence first thing as the sun rose over the city skyline. One of the only times he’d beaten Jifus whose schedule meant that she was out the door before he considered even putting his mask back on. 

Before he left, he set a note on her bedside table. A reminder of the schedule she’d need to keep in the evening. She didn’t stir, even at the noise of his respirator. 

When he met with Palpatine, the man was watching the last of the sunrise, and seemed to be considering something. 

“Master.” He waited several feet back. 

“The force is stirring again, my apprentice.” 

“Yes, master.” 

“The light is feeble but I can feel it rising. A Jedi lives, Lord Vader.” 

“It is possible.” He tucked his thumbs into his belt. 

“The children of the force are rising. Growing and discovering their power.” 

“The inquisitors are searching for them, my master.” 

“And yet,” Palpatine lifted a finger, cutting off Vader before he could continue to speak. “The light grows. I noticed the death of the Grand Inquisitor, my apprentice. A third party, perhaps.”

“I will open an investigation, my master.” 

“And how goes your investigation into the stolen ship, my apprentice?” The sun had risen completely. Vader contemplated the distant remains of the Jedi Temple. 

“I have discontinued it, as you ordered.” 

“Indeed, as I have ordered. Your persistence in uncovering the truth of the matter was…amusing. I wonder if you have summoned as much energy and focus on performing your husbandly duties as you did for the investigation.” 

When the emperor said husbandly duties, he meant sex. In the context of his relationship with Jifus it meant having a decent conversation on a regular basis.”

“I believe so.” 

Palpatine cackled. “I had wondered if you were capable of such, since your last encounter with Obi-Wan Kenobi. In fact, if you were willing at all.” He stayed still and did not rise to the bait. “Will your bleeding heart doctor be prepared for tonights engagement, Lord Vader?”

“She will.”

“Hmm. The boy start at the school soon, does he not?”

“He does, master.” 

“I will meet him.” 

“When?” 

“Eventually.” His appraising gaze made Vader nervous. “I would have preferred a blood heir, Lord Vader. However, given your…disastrous handling of your previous family.” He gritted his teeth. “That poor little girl. Or what is boy? I could never truly tell.” Vader glowered at his master. “One day, when you are ready to prove your abilities as a Sith Lord.” Palpatine trailed off, musing to himself. 

“I have not plotted against you, Master.” Vader told him truthfully. 

“One day, my apprentice, you will.” 

Not when Palpatine literally controlled his every breath.

“Now, even as Senator Organa’s daughter dies he continues to fight. He is admirable in his persistence.” 

“I understand he will be attending tonights event.” 

“Yes. Quiet the spectacle this will be. I assure you. A spectacle indeed.”


	27. The Ball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ball is here.

“Luke.” 

“Go away.” 

“Luke, come with me.”

“No!” 

“Luke.” The too-soft voice echoed in his ear; the hot breath that followed smelled like alcohol. “Your destiny with me. You have skills. You have such untapped potential.” A hand gripped his shoulder tightly.

Luke shivered, bolted to the floor and unable to move. “Go away,” he begged. “Leave me alone! I don’t know who you are!” 

“You’re Luke; you’re my Luke. I will find you.” The hand felt like it was grinding his bones together. “I will find you. You know I will. Come to me. Come with me.”

“STOP!” 

“I’ll find you, Luke.” The man promised. Luke shook his head, trapped in the nightmare. 

“Where have you been?” Another voice interrupted the man. This one was deeper and gruffer but with an edge of kind affection. “You’re missing chores.” Luke turned around. The ginger was gone; replaced by a stocky man in dusty clothes. His arms were crossed, and he was frowning. 

“Chores?”

“Yes, Luke.” The…farmer rolled his eyes. “You have chores like the rest of us.” 

“I’m sorry.” Luke stammered. “Do I know you?” 

“Of course,” his entire demeanor changed. “It’s a dream.”

“A dream?” Luke glanced to see near endless dunes to one side and then to the little moisture farm to the other. “Why am I dreaming about a moisture farm?” He squinted at the twin suns that glared at him from the sky. “What planet is this?” 

“I’m sorry, Luke.” The farmer uncrossed his armed, looking defeated and depressed, “I’m so sorry.” 

“Who are you?” 

“The same man I’ve ever been, I guess.” Luke stepped closer, the faint scent of sweat and dirt almost smelled familiar. It almost smelled like home. “I’m sorry about what happened.” 

“What happened?” 

“You were taken.” The stranger reached out to ruffle Lukes’ hair. “I just…I failed you. You were taken and then…gone. I’m sorry, Luke.” There was such heartbreak in his voice that Luke didn’t have the courage to contradict him. “We loved…we love you, Luke. Always.”

“I don’t.” 

“Luke!” The man was back. Luke cowered in the dark. “Luke!” The cultured voice echoed in his ear as a heartrending scream erupted in the distance. A woman sobbed desperately. Pain, Luke knew instantly, she was in pain. She needed help. “LUKE!” 

Luke jolted upright, tears streaming from his eyes and shaking. Sweat beaded on his forehead, he wiped it away with his sleeve and shivered in the dark. For a moment he could feel the tight hand on his shoulder. He could hear the man’s voice in his ear. 

The threat to find him. To take him away. 

Luke pulled his blankets closer and surveyed his room. It was still messy. He was the only person in his room. Feeling stupid, he pulled his stuffed nerf closer. 

What had he done back with Gohan and the crew? 

He’d. Luke paused and considered the next course of action. It wasn’t technically stupid, and it wasn’t technically brilliant, but it was a plan. 

Anything was better than sitting his room, waiting for the man to reach from the shadows and drag him away. For the first time since he’d moved in, Luke didn’t feel safe. He slid out of bed, keeping his blanket wrapped around himself, and padded to the door. 

The residence was silent, save for the contented buzzing of the carpet cleaning droids that patrolled the nearly endless hallways. They were such a small family, and they lived in such a stupidly huge palace. It made Luke think of the hundreds of orphans in homeless children in the galaxy they could take care of. Of all the people he could take in here and take care of. Most of the furniture in the empty rooms were covered in white sheets and protective wraps. He’d never been so happy to be stuck next to his parents. At least he didn’t have to walk past any of the creepy rooms whose furniture stood like mourning ghosts. 

He moved through the residence carefully. Keeping a sharp eye out for anything that seemed unusual or strange or something he didn’t think belonged. As if was, there was nothing out of the ordinary. He didn’t see anyone.

When he slipped through the door into his mother’s room, he shivered. The room was as chilly as usual, the way she liked it, and there was an unmoving lump in the middle of the bed. 

“Mom?” He inched across the cold carpet to the edge of the bed. “Mom.” He smacked the bed a bit. She didn’t respond. “Mom!” She stirred a bit. 

“Luke?” Her voice was heavy with sleep, slurred by her tiredness. “What is it?” 

“Mom.” He wasn’t really sure what to do now. When he’d been with Gohan, he’d just jumped on the bed and pushed her over. Gathering his courage, he climbed on and moved over until he was leaning over his mother. “Mom!”

“Luke.” Slowly, like a sleepy earthquake, she sat up. Her gray eyes were unfocused, and her short hair was mused. “What is it?” 

“Um.” He stared at her and then shrugged. “Nothing. I’mg going.” He made it a few inches back before her hand untangled itself from the blankets and grabbed his wrist. Luke jolted at the warmth. 

“Come here.” She ordered sleepily, almost dragging Luke forward. He obeyed and scrambled under the blankets and almost oozed into the sheets at the furnace-like heat. “What’s wrong.” Strong arms wrapped around him, Luke felt his fear melt away at the delicate touch to his hair. He leaned into his mother’s side and shook his head. “Nightmare?” 

He nodded. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

She was quiet for so long Luke thought she might have gone back to sleep. 

“Alright.” She murmured. “But you might find it easier to deal with it if you asked for help.” 

“It’s just a nightmare. They aren’t that important.” 

“It sounds more like PTSD.” Luke froze. His mother kept talking. “You keep having them and then, do they stem around the same thing that happened at some point?” 

“Yeah.” He felt very small cocooned in the darkness and his mother’s arms. 

“I have them too, Luke. Nightmares. PTSD for me too.” 

“About what?” He whispered. He stared at her square jaw and noticed the faint scars that traced down her neck and disappeared into her bedclothes. “Mom.” He wriggled closer to return the hug. “I’m sorry.” 

“I wasn’t a very good draft dodger,” she sighed. “After that, I was operating on people in equally high-stress situations. I’ve been bombed, shot, and stabbed, and nearly died a dozen times over. Scars all over, not just on my skin.”

“Mom.”

“I didn’t get better until I got help, Luke.” She hugged him tighter. Luke was sure that if she wasn’t, he might have started coming apart at the seams. “You’ll be okay, son. You don’t need to be ashamed of the nightmares, and it’s okay to get help.” 

“I don’t want to…” 

“You came to me, didn’t you.” Her voice was fading, “that’s a start.” A few moments later, she was asleep, and Luke had to resign himself with being stuck until she woke up. It gave him plenty of time to think. 

$#$#

Jifus woke up cuddling something tiny, blond, and adorable. She pulled whatever it was closer and dozed lightly for a while before it moved. 

“Mom.’ 

“What?” Luke. What was Luke doing her bed? Lazily, she opened her eyes and sighed. Luke’s stuffed nerf stared at her from the end of the bed and Luke peered through the dimness beneath the blankets. 

“It’s time to get up.” 

“No.” She closed her eyes. 

“Mom,” Luke wriggled free, and his head popped out from the blankets, he was grinning. “You have to get up.” 

“I don’t want to.” 

“You need to.” Luke said, “we need breakfast.” 

“I can go days without eating proper foods,” Jifus told him, and then she rolled over. “Go away.” 

“Mom.” He pushed on her shoulders. “Mom! You have the ball to go to today. You need to get ready.” 

“Not yet.” She rolled back over and snagged Luke. He gave an ‘oof!’ and was trapped. “Shh, you’re my new sleeping doll.” 

“Mom.” Luke wriggled furiously, but Jifus had helped someone give birth to a child that was more tentacles than body, he didn’t succeed. 

“Hmm.” She dug her hands into his side and Luke shrieked with involuntary laughter. 

“MOM!” He tossed about and laughed even harder as she tickled his ribs. “Stop! Stop!” 

“I have you now!” She bolted upright and tossed him to the end of the bed. Before he could recover, she tossed the edge of the blanket over him and began to roll him over until he was effectively trapped. 

“MOM!” 

“Ha! I have a morning snack!” Jifus laughed and leaned over to tickle his exposed feet. Luke wriggled furiously about, yelping and laughing as he tried to roll away. He was almost successful except Jifus decided to lean on him and pretended to yawn. 

“And now I’m tired again! Guess, I’ll take a nap!” 

“MOM!” He moved to yell more, but there was a knock on the door. 

“Who is it?” 

“It’s me.” Ryoo opened the door and inched through. “Um, want me to come back?” 

“Come on in,” Jifus waved her in, and Ryoo looked at Luke. 

“Stop laughing,” he told her, “get me out of here.”

“Why?” 

“I’ll distract Papa next time you get in trouble.” 

“Deal.” Jifus sat up, glaring at the both of them. 

“There better not be a team up.” 

“I’m afraid it is, doctor.” Ryoo crossed her arms, “surrender or be destroyed.”

“I see how it is!” Jifus exclaimed. “Mutiny! Not on my ship!”

“Ryoo!” Luke called, “get her!” 

#$#$#

Niles raised an eyebrow as Jifus, Luke, and Ryoo, clattered into the kitchen, laughing and looking breathless. None of them were dressed. 

“Milady.”

“Morning, Niles.” She bolted for the caf machine to make herself a cup as Luke and Ryoo took the extra seats around the kitchen work table. “I just lost a war.” 

“Indeed.” He’d set the table in the dining room with the vague hope that she’d use it one day. Thankfully he hadn’t been stupid enough to take the food into the dining room as well. 

“She fought with honor,” Luke exclaimed with a grin. “She was truly valiant.” 

“I mean, not really,” Ryoo said and grinned when Jifus shot her a glare over the rim over her mug. “Come on, you lost.”

“I’ve lost every war I’ve taken part of,” she shrugged and leaned against the counter, “it’s not a surprise anymore. Niles, what’s there to eat?” 

“Food,” he replied blandly. “I scraped some dirt off the welcome mat.” 

“Surprised there was a speck of dirt on it.” Ryoo joked. 

“And mixed it with engine oil and blood.” Niles continued. 

“The breakfast of champions.” Jifus said, “I think there’s some flavored dirt we could give Luke and Ryoo. Nasty children, they tossed me straight off my bed.” 

“It was fair,” Luke sniffed, “all’s fair in love and war.” 

“Pup,” she sipped her caf, “having been in one I can tell you with absolute certainty that that is false.”

“Ah,” Luke shrugged at her and eyed the plates of breakfast food that Niles was pulling from the conservator. “What’s that?” 

“Something truly core world,” Niles told them. “I have made every meal time concession and produced the most disgusting glops of Corellian food.” 

“Ah, he doesn’t want to make rim food!” Jifus exclaimed, laughing. “I thought we’d broken you of your food pretensions!”

“Never!” Niles called back as he set the beautifully decorated plates on the work table. “It would be better if you were eating in the dining room.”

“Nope.” Jifus snagged a plate, hopped onto the counter, and began to eat. Niles frowned deeply and then rubbed a hand over his face. 

“I tried.”

“You did.” Ryoo agreed, “my family used to eat all in the fancy dining room. Every single meal and we couldn’t ever eat it outside. It was so formal. Urhg, I hated it, but we talked and spent time together. Mama and Papa told me that was the most important thing.” She looked down at her own plate and sighed. “I don’t think I’m that hungry.” She set it down and walked from the kitchen looking dejected and upset. Jifus stared after her, her humor and laughter sliding right off her face. 

“Niles.” 

“Of course,” Niles bowed and ran from the kitchen to find Ryoo. 

“Why didn’t you go?” Luke asked, and his mother continued to eat. 

“Luke, I’m part of the problem she’s upset.” 

“But you haven’t done anything. You’ve been nice and wonderful and.”   
“Luke, you remember she’s a political prisoner here because the Emperor demanded it. Your father is…a frightening man.”

“I know,” Luke blinked, “Oh, and because she’s been comfortable and happy(ish) then she feels guilty and unhappy and probably angry.”

“Yes.” Jifus peered at him, and Luke shrugged to waylay any of her potential comments. He wasn’t stupid, and he wasn’t going to pretend to be. “Do you think she’ll ever be allowed to go home?” There was a funny expression on his mother's face. Luke wondered what she knew that he didn’t. “If the emperor was from Naboo then why does he even have to leverage Ryoo at all?” She didn’t answer; the weird expression stayed on her face. “Never mind.” Luke shrugged and his happiness deflated. An enjoyable morning had just been spoiled. “Are you going to work with your fellowship today?”

“No, I’m going to be here until it’s time for me to get ready for the ball. I am taking my first day off work since I got married!” 

“Did you work on your wedding day?” Luke wondered it didn’t seem out of character for her to do exactly that.” 

“The official story is that I didn’t, but when I got back to the residence, my pager went off. There was a speeder wreck into a building that evening. So I…hoped into a speeder and went to work. I didn’t get back here until four days later.” 

“What about your honeymoon?” 

“What about it?” 

“Did you go on one?” 

“No, honeymoons are a core world thing. I’m from the outer rim. We don’t do honeymoons. Luke, we hardly do weddings.” 

“Oh. That’s right.” Luke poked at his breakfast. 

‘You are more romantic than your father, and I are combined. We went on a date.” 

“Your first date,” Luke muttered, “months after you adopted me. Centuries after you got married.”

“Luke, you need a hobby.” 

“I have hobbies,” Luke said, “you just don’t…okay…I don’t have any hobbies, but that’s not my fault.” 

“Find some; we’ll help you find something if you need help.” 

“I fix things.” Luke protested. 

“No, you fiddle with junk. That is different. We can get you junk to fix though if you want.” 

“I’d like something to fix,” Luke said quietly as he considered the truly uncertain future he was facing. Not so long ago he thought that his future lay in crime. Now, it might be in crime. It might be in politics. He might end up being a ruler. 

The thought made him shudder. 

“Mom,” he waited for her to set the caf down. “Did you mean what you said last night?”

“What did I say?” 

“About,” he pushed the food around some more and then shrugged. “Getting help for your nightmares. You said that you had them.” 

“Have them, Luke.” Jifus stared down at him, and the sighed. “Luke, I still have nightmares. There are things that make me…freeze up. Things that bring on a panic attack.” She looked away. “The war shattered my nerves. It broke me into a hundred pieces and then…I lost so much of myself.” She didn’t look up. 

“But I don’t even remember what happened.” Luke admitted, “and it can’t be nearly as bad as what happened during a war.” 

“You know I once met a woman who’d been kidnapped as a child, sold into slavery by a gangster that had kidnapped her. Years and years of torment later she finally escapes and begins to build herself a life on a little planet. She eventually learns how to love people, and she finds another person who didn’t know how to love, and he loves her. Oops, the war comes to her front doorstep. Oops, bombs destroy everything she built, kills her husband, she nearly dies twice during surgery and cannot then walk ever again.” Luke stared, wide-eyed. “I’m positive what I’ve dealt with isn’t as bad as that. So I shouldn’t ever think about my.” 

“That doesn’t mean it doesn’t matter!” Luke exclaimed. Her point hit him a second later, and he blushed. “Mom.”

“See, Luke.” She stared at him, “it does matter if it hurts you; if it scares you.”

“I guess.” 

“You have a meeting with a counselor after school tomorrow anyway,” Jifus said, and Luke almost choked on his water. 

“WHAT?” 

“The school is providing one. 100% discreet and necessary.” 

“When were you going to tell me?”

“I made the meeting this morning,” Jifus told him, “When I was holed up in the refresher as you two made that impressive pillow fort. I thought it was time.” 

“Oh.” Luke stared and then leaned away. “I guess it is.” He sighed a bit more and then grinned. “It’s almost been a good morning. I’ll go talk to Ryoo.” 

“Okay, but she might be a little sensitive right okay.” 

“I got it.” He winked, and his mother grinned. 

#$#$#

The ball was scheduled to start later in the evening. Technically at eight but guests would be arriving as early as seven. From his position in the Emperor’s palace, Vader could see dozens of paparazzi staking out the entrance to the senate ballroom. 

“Lord Vader.” 

“My master,” he didn’t go to bended knee but kept his gaze on the crowd outside the building. 

“I trust your meeting with Senator Organa went well?”

“He understands the need for military expansion, my master,” Vader said. 

“Then he will not vote foolishly?”

“I do not know,” Vader replied. “He possesses the great stupidity of the brave and reckless.” 

“Then he is a fool.” Palpatine seethed, “surely we will speak to him at tonight's event.” 

“Yes, my master.” 

“Such a spectacle it will be. The official presentation of Lady Vader to the galaxy.”

“Yes, my master.” Palpatine hummed to himself, and Vader refused to shuffle awkwardly. 

“Come, my apprentice. We must prepare for the ball.” Vader gritted his teeth but followed the Sith. 

#$#$#$

“Can I come in yet?” 

“Not yet, Luke.” Jifus stared at the image reflected in the mirror and touched her hair carefully. The men and women who’d come from Vato Studios to help her get dressed all grinned broadly. “How do I look?” She asked. 

“You look amazing.” Said the twi’lek sincerely. “I…this is going to be the most amazing gown at the ball.” 

“Compared to the others of Imperial fashion and Court it is a little plain, but that’s what makes it so special.” The rodian held up her makeup supplies and sighed. “It is so beautiful.”

“MOM!” 

“Alright,” she nodded to Niles, “let him in.” Niles opened the door and stepped to the side as Luke rushed in his. His words died in his throat, and he blushed. 

“Mom.” 

“I look younger,” she turned around, feeling her heart beat faster, “I look much younger.” 

“You look amazing!” He cheered, he stepped forward and then paused. “Wow! Just! Wow! I can’t believe it! That is fantastic! Father is going to swoon!” 

Jifus chuckled and then turned back to the mirror. “I can’t believe it. I look fantastic. Just wait until you see the thing that goes over this. It is so ridiculous. It has no function other than to make me look stupid.” 

“I disagree, milady.” Niles coughed into his hand politely. “If I may be so bold?” 

“Go ahead.” Jifus touched the ornaments in her hair and felt her blush deepen. 

“You are radiant.” He bowed, “I will be honored to fly you tonight if I am not too distracted by your beauty.” 

“Ah. I am wearing a lot of expensive diamonds.” Jifus grinned and pulled Luke into a spine-crushing hug. “You really think this is good?” 

“Yes! I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like it.” 

“My lady,” the head tailor stepped forward with another bundle in his arms. “Your cloak. Gentleman has left the instruction to keep the hood down when you dismount the speeder at the entrance. The part of the hood before your eyes will allow you to see, but it will also keep the flashbulbs from blinding you.”

“I like this man; he is very smart.”

“My lady, Gentleman has requested we use ambiguous gender pronouns when speaking of them.” 

“Ah, they are very smart.” Jifus beamed into the mirror some more and then sighed. “I’m late.”

“It will make sense for you to be late,” Niles told her as he began to help the tailor begin unwrapping the cloak. Luke gasped as it unraveled in their hands. He stuffed his hands into his mouth and giggled furiously. Jifus blushed deeper and then shook her head. 

“Well,” she held still as the cloak was smoothed out and then settled over her shoulders. “I do need to go. Niles, get the speeder started. Luke, bed at the usual time, you have school tomorrow.” She beamed at the members of Vato studios, “thanks so much for your help.” 

#$#$#$

Vader stared impatiently at the hordes and hordes of senators and delegates that had arrived with full fanfare. From his spot at the Emperor’s side, he could identify a dozen rebel sympathizers, and Imperial fanatics mingling around the room. 

He couldn’t remember what the occasion was or why the Emperor had bothered throwing a ball at all. He didn’t care. People were standing around the enormous room, eating delicate finger foods and drinking low alcohol content drinks, and gossiping. 

“Lord Vader.” General Ashen stepped close. Vader inclined his head toward the man. “Lady Vader is approaching sir, shall I send out some guards?”

“There will be no need.” Vader cast a glance to his master who was probably eavesdropping. The man made no move to stop him, so he straightened and proceeded down the stairs. 

He stormed past the hordes of glittering Court members and the too-heavily indulging officers. People scattered before him, diving out of the way. He split the obnoxious party-goers with his mere presence. In the entrance hall, there were dozens of holo-cameras setup; several reporters were in the middle of interviews with members of Court and some with his military officers. There were sharp gasps, terrified squeaks, and horrified stares. 

Vader had never been to this part of any Imperial celebration. He had lurked at the Emperor’s side, having arrived with him or melted from the shadows. He had never walked out into the middle of a field of cameras. 

He ignored them all. Past the entrance hall and then the coat room, then the security check-points, then out onto landing pad. 

The landing pad was enormous and packed to bursting with paparazzi, stormtroopers creating a barrier, socialites that had just arrived, and the few palace servants that were trying to keep everything from going to the pits. 

At his arrival, almost everyone froze. A horrified silence fell over the crowd. His troopers stiffened to attention, and the socialites jumped out of the way as he made his way down the rest of the red carpet to the landing zone where the speeder was settling down. Vader was faintly aware of the braver paparazzi snapping pictures, flashbulbs popped behind him, and the cameras angled his way.

As the door slid up and a delicate staircase unfolded itself, Vader felt part of him relax. No longer would he have to suffer these tedious events alone. He would have someone to talk to, someone to spend the evening with who was not terrified of him. 

“Hello, husband.” Jifus stepped from the speeder as delicately and carefully as she operated. From behind him, there was a hush, and then a collective gasp as she straightened and her gown was on full display. Well, her cloak was on display. Its fabric was sheer, almost see-through. The hood was wide and hung over her forehead and eyes. It was lined with tiny Gungan pearls to give the impression of a white dwarf star. Where the hood joined with the rest of the body, the colors began to change. Beginning from the base of her shoulder, directly down the center was a ray of color that began white then turned into pink embroidery interspersed with rose quartz and pale-pink diamonds and ended in a deep red stitching accentuated by blood rubies. The gradual fading from white to pink to red was something Vader had had to use the Force to ensure perfection in both stitchings (to avoid tearing the fabric) and gem placement (to ensure optimal positioning) and then to design a pattern. 

On either side of red were rays that faded from pale lavender to a deep purple. Unlike the sharp, angled stitching in red, the purples were soft and rounded patterns that danced over the sheer fabric as carefully as the corresponding gems that accompanied them did. There were fewer jewels among the purple, but the few there were; were no less impressive than the reds.   
Then, besides the purple were twin rays of white that faded to soft blue and then to a deep blue that rivaled the depths of Mon Calamari. Again, the rays were highlighted by the few gems that equaled them in color and brilliance. The blue patterns were as unhurried as the tides, deep and wide but with celestial grace. 

The last color, which rested on the front panels of the cloak, began to fade from the point of the clasp. A clasp made from a solid white kryat stone. From the white, the cloak faded to gray and then to silver. He’d used actual silver thread to finish the embroidery at the bottom. There were no jewels on this part of the cloak except near the very bottom where he’d added silver, black sapphires. 

“Hello, wife.” He held out a hand, marveling at the smile that outshone even the opulence of her cloak. “It is good to see you.”

“Thank you,” Jifus smiled and took it. Their voices carried over the hushed crowd. They stared at each other a moment longer, Vader caught by the softness of her expression and how she glowed in the force. “Shall we head in?” Jifus offered, sensing that Vader was a little distracted. 

“As you wish.” They proceeded down the red carpet as the paparazzi began to recover from their terror and shock. They might have feared Darth Vader, but all knew that they’d be murdered by their editors if they failed to grab a decent picture of Lady Vader in her outfit. Many mourned the fact that they’d be unable to see how her hair was done or even what her gown looked like. Those pictures would be taken by the lucky photographers that had proper access. 

Still, every publication would get decent ratings as they’d be the ones with the images of her cloak which would probably be removed in the coat room. 

#$#$#$

Jifus felt jittery and nervous, hyper-aware that she was wearing several thousands of credits worth of gems, excluding the kryat stone. Including the kryat stone, the price tag of her cloak was pushing a million. 

Kit squeezed her hand, and she smiled faintly up at the mask. “I trust you are satisfied?” 

“I am.” When they reached the coat room, it was clear of everyone except the attendants. Said attendants looked faint at the re-appearance of Darth Vader. Jifus graced them with a faint smile and pushed her hood back. “Good evening.” 

“Lady Vader.” One, a human who was only faintly shaking, approached. Jifus unhooked the clasp and began to push it off her shoulders, only to be assisted by her husband who then held it out to the attendant. 

“Thank you,” she told him and then glanced back at the attendant who was accepting the enormously expensive garment. “Please be careful with it.”

“Of course.” He bowed and retreated as quickly as possible. 

“Shall we?” Jifus gestured to the door to the entrance chamber where more stormtroopers waited. She doubted any of the security checkpoints wanted to frisk her husband. In response, Vader took her hand again and led her, with every bit of courtly grace he could manage, through the security guards and then to the entrance chamber. A dozen holo-cams turned toward them, and excited whispering broke out. JIfus glanced around the room and at the overly excited men and woman standing in front of the holo-cams. 

She was surprised, shocked even when someone shouted. “Lady Vader! Whose designs are you wearing tonight?” Jifus thought no would have the gumption to speak in the presence of her husband as was the usual case. 

“A statement will be released later.” Vader intoned, and the hush fell again. It looked as if the woman would speak again but they were already through the door. 

#$#$#

Admiral Thrawn considered the fluttering, excited woman in front of him with a critical eye. Governor Tua was a great deal shorter than he was except for the ridiculous hat she insisted on wearing.They hadn’t reached a part in their circular conversation that he could politely extract himself from. He was intent on drawing himself away from the woman when whisperings broke out. The excited hissing and gasping was enough to make him glance to the door. 

“Oh!” Governor Tua turned to see what had snagged his attention. Her hands came up to cover her mouth. “She looks lovely.”

Where much of Imperial court was shifting toward stark black and other deep colors, and looked like a crowd in deep mourning. Lady Vader was a vibrant splash of color. She practically glowed under the bright lights of the ballroom. Her short gray hair was set into a simple ring of braids and resting just on the outside of the braids was a small crown crafted from silver, it was tall enough to obscure the braids and all but dripping blood rubies. Her face was as pale as usual, though her usual lines were smoothed through makeup, her pale gray eyes were expertly highlighted. Her smile was radiant. 

Thrawn admired the straight off the shoulder neckline and how the left side deftly disappeared into a dark red sash that extended to her right hip. He knew the red sash indicated her status as a doctor. Some might have said that the red was for Lord Vader’s lightsaber, but Thrawn knew better. The deep silver of her gown, which seemed to glow without the aid of embedded glitter or jewels, he identified as raw Axxilian silk. Its simple A-line design of the front was offset by an elegant panel train that was the same deep red as the sash and rubies on her crown. 

“I pity the fool who designed that gown.” Thrawn found himself muttering. Governor Tua stared at him. 

“Why’s that?” People turned at her voice, loud as usual. 

“Because if they are not already in love with Lady Vader, then they are falling.” He said quietly, and Tua glanced from Lord Vader and Lady Vader and them back at them. 

“I was always under the impression that they got along rather well. They seemed to enjoy their stay on Lothal.” 

“I cannot say. My interaction with the doctor has been limited.” He wondered what would happen if he offered a kiss to the doctor’s hands. If Vader recognized the significance of such a motion and if he would care if he did. Thrawn watched the Supreme Command of the Imperial Navy lead his wife through the crowds until they both stood slightly to the right of Emperor and leaned closer and seemed to begin speaking. 

“She is an odd woman, cares very little for proper process. I have no idea how they get along. She is a doctor! He is….” Tua struggled to find the words. 

“Lord Vader?” They both turned to the newcomer, a stout human male in the stern uniform of the Imperial Army. 

“Colonel Veers,” Thrawn inclined his head, and Veers offered a simple salute. His wife curtsied. “Lady Veers.”

“Good evening, Admiral.” Veers said, and he nodded to the Governor, “Governor.” 

“Colonel, we were just discussing Lord Vader.” Tua beamed at the newcomer, looking like she needed something stronger in her glass. While it wasn’t polite to discuss one’s commander, Veers seemed equally curious. 

“I always wondered how he proposed.” Veers rubbed at his chin. 

“I have no idea,” Tua said, and Thrawn felt his annoyance sharpen as the conversation he’d been trying to have devolved into gossip. 

“Admiral,” seemingly unnoticed by Colonel Veers, his wife drifted closer to the Chiss. “I understand that you enjoy art?” 

“One of my passions, madam.” He said, and the wafer-thin woman smiled as faintly as she spoke. 

“Have you seen the last presentation of Imperial Center art?” 

“I have.” He turned to the woman, “which piece caught your attention?” Lady Veers smiled, and Thrawn felt some of his annoyance siphon off. 

#$#$#

Jifus was still nervous, her entire body feeling like it was vibrating too fast and her heart was beating too quickly. She hadn’t attended a ceremony like this since the sham of her wedding, and she wasn’t used to being the object of gossip. 

She was used to conferences where they’d debate topics of health and wellness, and people would agree or disagree. Here, Jifus knew that her clothes were the topic of conversation, the way she looked, how old she looked, how much her outfit cost. It was basic, simple gossiping that made her want to take a serving tray and smash it over the Emperor’s head; knowing that it was probably stemming from him. 

Kit seemed to know that his usual habit of standing silently and being as intimidating as possible wouldn’t work. He stayed close and exercised perfect manners that seemed to shame the other ranking members of the Empire. 

Jifus hadn’t seen Grand Moff Tarkin pull out his wife’s chair. The other members of Palpatine’s inner circle spoke of nothing of consequence. 

“Lady Vader.” She leaned forward and stared over at the Emperor who didn’t have a plate in front of him. “How radiant you seem tonight, glowing in your…youth and beauty.” It was a cheap shot, even for his standards. He seemed to wave, and Jifus finally noticed an enormous, over-sized portrait of the late Senator Amidala that was hanging from a nearby wall. She stared at the picture, the flawless rendition of Amidala’s famed beauty made her want to crawl back into her scrubs and hide. 

But. But Jifus had faced the executioner's blade and blaster several times over. She’d faced her own demons, and nothing Palpatine could say would compare to what she’d already said. Jifus met the sickly yellow eyes with every bit of courage and power she had used to go toe to toe with death. “Thank you, sir.” She replied and felt Kit stiffen beside her. She set her hand on his arm and kept her bland smile in place as she and Palpatine continued to stare at each other. 

“Tell me, my young friend,” Palpatine looked away, and Jifus counted it as a win. “Surely there can be little appeal in such a bold…doctor.” 

“As little appeal as there is in a…Sith Lord.” Jifus said, her smile might have been a little too sharp because the Emperor frowned.

“While it is true that opposites attract,” Vader said suddenly, and he took the hand that had been holding him and rubbed his thumb across her knuckles, “avians of a feather do flock.” Tarkin’s expression of confused annoyance was perfect for savoring. 

“Indeed.” Palpatine glanced from Vader to Jifus who had chosen to ignore him for the remainder of the meal. He switched to speaking with Tarkin who provided a decent amount of entertainment. 

Jifus stared at the image of Senator Amidala and turned to her food silently. The next two courses followed in equal silence until Vader turned, moving for the first time in half an hour. 

“Liko’s postulate does not account for a change in planetary gravity.”Jifus frowned at the steak and then at her husband. 

“It accounts for the planet that Liko was aware of, which was a single planet.” She replied, “It accounts for what Liko understood at the time.” 

“That is no excuse. Even if inter-planetary exploration had not been wildly understood, he should have at least known about other celestial bodies.” 

“If they had been aware of celestial bodies then I’m sure he’d’ve added them. As is stands, he did not know about them until the week before his death.” 

Grand Moff Tarkin, who’d been trying to spend the ball ignoring his wife’s offended and furious glowering. She had been glaring pointedly at him since the Vader’s had made their appearance at the ball. He’d never imagined the possibility of being compared, and losing, to Darth Vader. He supposed there was something romantic about Vader’s manners and the apparently engaging conversation he was having. Still, there was no reason his wife had to be kicking his ankles. 

“Madam,” he finally turned to his wife and frowned when she sneered and immediately ignored him. It made no sense, so he turned to the Emperor who was observing the proceedings with a critical eye. “Majesty.” 

“What do you think of the conversation?” The man asked, and Tarkin finally focused on Vader and the splendidly dressed doctor. They were discussing particle physics with the ease of a pair of debutants discussing the weather. 

“I understand only every other word.” He admitted, and the Emperor nodded slowly. Eventually, the man turned to look at the image of Senator Amidala with a thoughtful frown. “I would not have thought such a subject would be closely studied by a doctor or any student of medicine.” 

“It would seem so.” Palpatine agreed, “tomorrow, attend to me at noon.” 

“As you command,” Tarkin agreed instantly. 

#$#$#$

For the Emperor of the known galaxy, he should have been able to provide delicious, expensive food that made his guests want to come back to each ball or event. 

Jifus thought Luke could have made better food. It was beautifully presented but ultimately bland and lacking any significant flavor. She put the fault on the Core World sensibilities and their lack of ability to use or tolerate spices. 

“When does this end?” She whispered quietly and felt Kit’s humor in the way he squeezed her free hand. If she were still drinking alcohol, she would have downed an entire bottle of Death by Water by the end of the Emperor’s speeches and then by the next seven that followed. She hadn’t been this tempted to drink strong liquor since her wedding. 

A lot of people at the party had another idea. Generals, captains, admirals, ministers, governors, and guests were drinking like the sun wouldn’t rise tomorrow. She was bored enough to calculate the average amount that each party-goer was downing. After dinner and speeches, there would be the requisite talking and gabbing and somehow, even more eating. They had been late for the first gab session, but she was sure that she wouldn’t get out of the second one without being accosted by some idiots. 

#$#$3

“When does the dancing start!” Luke demanded as Niles set the bowl of popcorn next to his head and settled onto the floor beside him. “I want to see them dance!” 

“When the dinner is finished, Luke,” Niles told him. “You don’t even know if your parents will dance.” 

“Papa,” Niles looked startled, “knows that Mother loves dancing. Mom loves it. She dances with me all the time. She dances with Deno and you. Why doesn’t he dance with her? Doesn’t he care? Look at what she’s wearing! That is the perfect dancing dress! She made everybody else look like an idiot at a costume party. Don’t tell me that this isn’t the perfect time to dance.” 

“They are still eating, Luke.” Niles reminded him. 

“It looks like they’re talking,” Luke muttered bitterly. “I hope they’re having a good conversation.” 

#$#$#

The debate on about physics hadn’t abated but had switched tracks to some obscure topic of chemistry that made Grand Moff Halifax’s head spine. He wasn’t sure if he wanted to drink the rest of his booze or.

“Actually.” He glanced at his wife as she leaned over him. “Lady Vader, you’d need to have to calculate the proper PSI before you could even begin to build the experiment.” The Sith and the doctor turned to her as one, and Halifax damned propriety and downed the rest of his glass. 

“Indeed.” Vader intoned, and he considered Lady Halifax before gesturing, “how would you calculate it?” 

“Well,” the conversation gained traction which didn’t abate until the meal was finally over. Something that they were grateful for. It was hard to discuss politics when Lord Vader was discussing science and the minute details of mathematics. Halifax was honestly surprised to discover that Vader could discuss anything besides military strategy. 

“Dancing, I think.” He said awkwardly as the members of the table stood. His wife, all six and half feet of her, moved past him to Lord Vader to continue the conversation. He glanced to Tarkin who seemed blandly annoyed; Lady Tarkin had taken off too quickly to be considered polite by anyone’s standards. 

Too many people were beginning to stare at the top table and wonder who was supposed to lead the opening dance. Usually, it would be the Tarkin family who would take the honor except that Lady Tarkin had stormed off. 

“My young friend,” Emperor Palpatine hobbled close to the tight-knit collection of scientists. Vader turned, and Lady Vader looked furiously annoyed for a few seconds too long. “The first dance, if you would.” A withered hand pointed to the swiftly clearing dance floor. 

Lord Vader made no reply; he held out his hand. Lady Vader almost smiled when she set her hand in his, and they began to move toward the dance floor. There was plenty of hushed whispering and muttering, and Halifax withered under the bitter stare of his wife. She snapped open a fan and pointedly looked away. 

#$#$#

He hadn’t danced in public since the last time he had been at a Senate ball as a young padawan. He’d taken out a grandmotherly senator from the Mid-Rim who didn’t mind that he stepped on her toes or stuttered his way through the awkward conversation. He had only danced with Padme a few times; their dancing was usually a bad mix of Naboo and Tatooine dancing. Which he’d enjoyed but wasn’t appropriate for this sort of setting. 

He was not technically a bad dancer, but it had been so long. By the time they had reached the dance floor, it was cleared completely, and the orchestra was giving their instruments a final tuning. The music that opened was not that of a Core piece, rather, the simple, unhurried strains of an Axxilian waltz. 

Sidious would be furious; he dimly noted as he set a hand on her waist and took her other hand. 

“This dance, my wife?” 

“This dance.” She agreed with shocking patience. He listened for the cue, and they stepped into motion as if they’d practiced it for years. 

It was beautiful, how she moved; a reflection of how elegant and graceful she was in the operating room. Though Vader had never seen her operate. She led the dance as much as he. Lighter than the Force itself and more radiant than any masterpiece. Jifus glowed with her joy as much as her grief. 

He twirled her around, the edges of her dress brushing against his shins and he followed the motion, sending his cape flaring wildly. The music rose, a trembling climax. Music dripped from the strings as much as emotion, holding onto one last pit of metal before falling into the open air. At the last moment they joined at side by side, he set a hand on her waist and brought her into the air, spinning around until Jifus regained the ground she’d left seconds later in the same spot. He heard the attending court gasp in awe. As much at his sudden gracefulness as at his wife’s skill. 

They ought to have been in awe; it was only right. 

As the music slowed, Vader his heart skip a few beats as they moved to a gentle halt directly beneath the hovering chandelier. He stared at Jifus, meeting her bright gray eyes with his own disguised blue. She was smiling with such abandon, her teeth sparkling almost as much as the rubies on her head. Vaguely he was aware of the rest of the room, exploding into applause. 

“Why haven’t we danced before?” She asked, and Vader tilted his head to the side as the applause eventually lessened. 

“I do not know.” As other couples made their way out to the dance floor, he considered what the dance meant as it was being broadcast across the known galaxy. 

“Luke will be much pleased with this development.” He observed, and Jifus laughed. 

“He will.” She laughed as the music picked back up, and they moved into the next dance. 

#$#$#

Thrawn was less than pleased to be seemingly stuck with Governor Tua as his dance partner for the evening. He was at least pleased that they began to discuss something other than politics and idle gossip. Once the subject of art was breached, Tua had become very interested. In truth, no one else at the ball would have danced with or spoken to him. He was a high ranking alien in a xenophobic empire. 

“I had no idea Lord Vader could dance so well,” Tua said after several minutes of blessed silence. Thrawn felt a headache mounting. “I mean, I’ve seen Lady Vader dance. She taught a few of the cadets at the academy while they were waiting for some test results. She’s so patient with them.” 

“Truly?” He considered the distant black form of Vader and the shorter, plumper form of his wife in red and silver. He knew Lord Protector Piett, a vicious woman with a deep grudge against anyone from a galactic government, and who hated Tarkin with a violent passion. He hadn’t managed to make the Lord Protector hate him any less, but he thought he was making headway. The pair moved off the dance floor and vanished.

“I just wonder what it’s like to have a child with them? I mean, they’re married but how do they even function? How do they raise a child?”

“About the same way you take care of a plant.” Both turned abruptly to see the very couple they were discussing, standing just a few feet away. Thrawn blushed from the impropriety, but Tua only grinned. 

“How is that?” Tua asked. 

“Water him every few days and make sure he doesn’t die and eventually you get a healthy plant…err, boy.” Lady Vader smiled, and Thrawn recognized the irritated angle that he’d seen in her father just a few days before. “Governor,” she held out a hand which Tua took after only a moment of hesitation. Thrawn’s eyebrows rose as the doctor whirled the astonished politician onto the dance floor. 

He was aware of Lord Vader’s quiet observation just seconds later. “I am grateful for the doctor’s interference, Lord Vader.” 

“A sentiment you may share when she returns.” Vader rumbled. “I would not have expected gossip, Admiral.” 

“I apologize, Lord Vader.”

“No doubt that you will be joined by the millions of other fools who have little to do with their time.” He kept his temper, but only just. The alien nodded and watched the floor, who was dancing and who was not. Their silence was interrupted by an excited voice. 

“Lord Vader.” The sith jolted as a beautiful woman joined their group, followed by a blushing Soontir Fel. The woman curtsied easily and beamed. “Wynssa Starflare.” 

“Good evening, madam.” Vader replied, “captain.”

“A word, if I may?” The sith nodded. Wynssa whirled on her boyfriend and the admiral and seized their shoulders. Soontir and Thrawn were pushed together and out onto the dancefloor before either had the chance to protest. “Have a nice dance, my love.” She called after their retreating figures, which had to begin dancing to avoid being trampled by other party-goers. 

“An effective strategy,” Vader observed, “I am impressed.” 

“Thank you, so much.” She fluttered her fan a bit and kept smiling, “I do have some business to discuss, however.” 

“Very well,” he waved for her to continue.

“I am an actress.” 

“I am aware,” Vader said, and she looked surprised. “I keep track of my most promising officers.” He didn’t mention that Luke was now a fan of her budding career. 

“Oh,” she paused, “there is a film that I’ve auditioned for called the Love Letters. Even though the director and producer swear up and down that it is not a reflection of the revelation that you write the lady frequently. I can’t help but feel that it actually is.” 

“If you intend to catch a glimpse of those letters.” He trailed off warningly, and Wynssa shook her head. 

“Certainly not, most definitely not. I only wanted to know if you would mind such a film being made. I’m sure they’ve been trying to hide the plot but it is…cheap.” 

“Which role have you taken?” Vader wondered how the film might be if it was made. “

“That of the military commander.” She looked excited, “Milo Ginneor is taking the role of the doctor. If you don’t know him, he plays Commander De’va on Love Against Intelligence.” 

“I am unaware of the show,” he lied and Starflare looked grateful. “What was your question?”

“If it was possible to speak to Lady Vader about this film. I would have spoken with her, but she seems busy.” Jifus was currently dancing with Senator Chuchi; both were laughing.

“A messenger?”

“Ah, in so many words.” She looked suddenly embarrassed, and Vader sighed to himself. 

“My wife is not a blood sucking terror,” he told the actress, “she will not carve your heart from your chest in a fit of rage. It is possible to approach her.” 

“Well, since the whole article about her came out…I am understandably wary.” The actress stared at him and then at her boyfriend as he returned, bright red. 

“My lord.” 

“Captain.” The man took her hand and was about to bid him goodbye when Jifus returned. 

“I need to go.” Taken aback, he pointed in the direction of the nearest refresher. “No, I have to leave.” She held up her pager. “Emergency call.” 

“I will find a pilot,” he promised, and the actress spoke up. 

“Soontir is a pilot,” the man stared, gaping. “He can fly you.” 

“I can fly myself.”

“Soontir is allowed to break the traffic laws.” Wynssa pointed out, and Jifus nodded. 

“Alright, details. I need to have been there twenty minutes ago. We need to go.” 

“Of course,” Soontir kissed Starflare’s cheek and followed an intently stomping Jifus from the ballroom. Every air of grace and delicate femininity vanished beneath the weight of her duty. He watched his wife leave and wished he could drink something to soothe his nerves. 

“He won’t be making it back,” Wynssa said morosely, “I wonder what happened?” 

“So much for her day off,” Vader muttered and realized a moment too late that his companion had heard. 

The actress stared at him and then considered something, “where was she hiding that thing?” 

“Pockets.” 

“Her gown has pockets?” Wynssa stared at him and then put a hand to her head. “Alright, I have to know who designed her gown. I will throw money at him until I get something from him. That was beautiful, and it has pockets. I mean, sure she’s wearing a literal crown of rubies, but I think the pockets ought to bring the price tag up. Honestly, pockets! Who was the designer?” 

“It came from Vato Studios, designed by a being called Gentleman,” Vader said, and another socialite sidled up to the conversation. 

“Vato Studios can design pockets?” The small woman asked, and she looked from actress to Sith Lord, “I would love to have decent pockets on my gowns.”

“They are not already commonplace,” Vader said, pretending ignorance. 

“That’s so they can sell up handbags.” The woman waved a hand about, “I have spent enough money to buy a planet.” 

“Or an apartment in the capital grid.”

“Yes, on handbags. Some of them don’t fit more than a credit in them. It is ridiculous.” They both laughed, and Vader sighed to himself. 

“I understand that the designer will be presenting in two weeks,” Vader said. 

“A fashion show!” Wynssa said, “I haven’t been to one of those in ages!”

“The last one I went to was terrible.” Another socialite joined the group. A girl only a year or two over Luke’s age. She was small and trembling but clearly trying to be as graceful as the other women. 

“Why is that?” Vader asked, and the girl sighed. 

“The designer shouted at everyone and then knocked a model down from the stage. He then told everyone to get out and shouted some more. I don’t understand why being a genius artists suddenly means you don’t have to have manners.” She rolled her eyes. “He was so rude.” 

“You mean Emil? Oh,” the second one spoke, “I can’t stand that man. If only he didn’t design such beautiful clothes.” 

“That is no excuse,” Vader intoned, and the women turned to him, “permitting such behavior only encourages it to continue.”

“How are we supposed to make him stop? I won’t even let my model friends near him even though he’d give them a career boost. I just don’t.” The girl paused and then grinned. “We’re his buyers! You are a famous actress; you are the daughter of a core Grand Moff, I am popular as well. Even if he designs beautiful clothes, we could find someone else to support. Lord Vader,” the group swiveled to him, “do you actually know this Gentleman fellow, have you met?” 

“I have,” Vader confirmed, feeling stupid. He wished he had been the one to fly Jifus to the hospital.

“What is your impression?” 

“He is less obnoxious than your reports of this…Emil fellow. He has a very exact standard of professionalism.” 

“Did you see any of his other creations?” 

“I did.” 

“And?” They were staring at him. 

“They were acceptable.” 

“Like tonight's gown on Lady Vader acceptable or the gown that…Lady Tarkin is wearing?” 

“The former.”

“Excellent.” The conspirators closed in tighter around him, and Vader was treated to the bizarre sensation of-of hearing people talk about him…in front of him. He hoped Jifus was having a productive evening.

#$#$3

Jifus hit the ground running, jumping out of the speeder before it had stopped. She rushed past the frantic and screaming and packed ER for the prep room, shouting for an orderly. Two followed her into the prep-room as did a nurse. 

As the orderlies began to help her out of her gown, the nurse gave frantic updates. An out of control speeder had collided with a building, killing two and injuring others. It had collapsed the side of a star-scraper which had brought the frantic attention of the local rescuers. The ER was packed to bursting, and the injured were being lined out on the streets.

JIfus pulled on her scrubs as fast as possible, ignoring her too ornate hair-style and the crown still atop her head. It wasn’t going anywhere. 

As soon as she was dressed properly, her gown left on the floor, Jifus ran to the front to help with emergency triage. 

#$#$#

It took hours for the party abate and the last of the stragglers to make it their homes or hotels or palaces. Vader morosely paced the length of his master's palace, annoyed. 

“Lord Vader.” One of the night security stepped into the hallway. 

“What?” He continued to observe the skyline and turned only when the aide joined him at the window. 

“A speeder piloted by an intoxicated driver wrecked into a building five hours ago. The death toll is up to eight, and there are several dozens severely injured, twenty in critical and the rest non-lethal injuries. Lady Vader has been spotted on the scene, and given the events of the evening,…she has become the trending topic and the headline story of every news broadcast for the next seven hours. ‘

“Show me,” Vader ordered, and the man wordlessly handed over a datapad. He blinked a few times and then some more. The image was…it was a fantastic shot and clearly professionally taken. Jifus knelt in the street beside the prone body of a bleeding ithodorian. She was back in her scrubs, and a plain white mask was fixed over her nose and mouth. Blood was splattered across both. Jifus’s hair though was still adorned with the crown of rubies and silver, her hair still in place despite the obviously chaotic evening. The juxtaposition of her crown against the usual clothes of her profession and passion was such that Vader’s breath nearly caught. When he finally dared look at her gray eyes, so focused and intent, he felt faint. 

This was her element. Her calling, her passion. Standing in the thick of chaos and screams and bringing the hope to a hopeless situation. This was not someone who worked from a distance to bring change and hope. She had charged onto the scene wearing a gown worth more than a whole wing of the hospital and…Vader felt, ridiculously, like swooning. As wondrous as she had looked emerging from the speeder, the object of attention for millions, in a gown and cloak were millions; he couldn’t help but think that Jifus had never looked more radiant. 

“I will keep this.” He said after a too-long silence. “Keep me updated.” 

“Yes, milord.” Vader forced himself to fold his hands behind his back and wondered if they would make it back in time to see Luke off to school tomorrow and what sort of retribution the Emperor would want for his wife ruining his plans of embarrassing them both.


	28. School and Work

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra is a King! He's still learning.   
> The emperor is a dick. Luke gets into trouble.   
> Vader, despite what he says, gossips.

Ezra’s first day as The Right Honorable and Just King of Zuden was going just about as he’d expected it to. 

First, everyone in the palace was someone connected to the con. From Ezra, the figurehead King, to the doorman. Apparently, the man was a feared killed somewhere, but so far he just seemed like a guy who ate too many flower seeds and left cigar butts in flowerpots. 

“Ezra?” He glanced around to see Dorme enter his room. “Are you up?” It wasn’t like his room on Lothal; it sure wasn’t like his room in the separatist base. It was technically the biggest bedroom in a palace, with an attached refresher, a bunch of other rooms that seemed useless, and an office. 

“Yeah.” 

“Good,” she approached, holding a familiar circlet of silver metal. “You need your crown, my king.” 

“Oh, geez.” He blushed furiously and let Dorme kneel beside his chair and begin pinning the circlet into place. “Dorme, I’m going to have help being a king, right? I know this is just a con and everything, but there are real people out there. I don’t want to mess them up.” She stared a moment longer and smiled, soft and sweet.

“We will all be here to help you, Ezra. Hopefully, as we continue with this work, you will learn how to solve these problems yourself. Until then, you are going to have help.” 

“I sure hope so.” He stood up and gestured to his clothes, “I’m supposed to go meet some of the people, right?” 

“Yes.” 

“It’s crazy,” he muttered, “a few months ago I was living on the streets all alone, and then suddenly I’m here. King. Sheesh, if my parents are looking at me from wherever they are I hope I’m not disappointing them.” 

“King Delyn,” Dorme bowed gracefully, even as she frowned. 

“King Delyn,” Ezra repeated. “King Delyn. I am King Delyn. I…need breakfast.” 

“Gohan is waiting for you in the throne room for your introduction to the last of our schemers.” 

“Who is it?” 

“They are from Tatooine. They will be your…bodyguards in their most official capacity.”

“What about my unofficial capacity?” Ezra asked. They moved through the palace until they reached the throne room and he swallowed at the sight of a dozen people of various species and genders, all heavily armed, standing there. Gohan was off to the side, chewing on some stick that she said helped her teeth hurt less from popular human food. “Hello.” 

“Hello.” A human woman stepped forward. She had a round face and figure as well as a kind, motherly expression. “I’m Beru Lars; I understand that you’re Ezra?” 

“Yes, it is a pleasure to meet you, ma’am.” 

“These are my slingers,” she gestured to the other people. “You’ll meet them later, but we’re going to be your security staff.” 

“Thank you.” Ezra smiled and shook her hand, “I know this is going to be a long job, so I hope to cause as little trouble as possible.” 

“Of course.” Unlike the other actors and thieves and fraud experts and art forgers, none of this crew bothered to pretend to bow. It wasn’t something he really needed, but he was curious as to why they hadn’t when the other criminals had been delighted to pretend subservience. “Don’t worry; we won’t let you get into too much trouble, young man.” 

“Thank you, ma’am.” He grinned to Gohan who was still chewing on her stick, “are we serving them breakfast?” 

“Yeah, in the dining room. Table’s set and everything.” 

“I’ll show you the way,” Ezra proclaimed, “and we can talk about our plans today. I have a meeting with a bunch of the free elected mayors. We’re not expecting any trouble, but you know what can happen.” He shot her a grin and took her hand.

“That is a great idea.” Beru agreed, and Gohan trailed behind the pair. The other shooters from Tatooine seemed untroubled by Ezra’s age or his title. 

 

Luke woke up to someone shaking his shoulders. He didn’t want to wake up. Smothered, as he was in his blankets and pillows. 

“Luke, you need to get up!” It was Niles. 

“What are you doing in my room?” He asked, blearily opening his eyes and looking at the narrow faced butler. 

“Luke, it is your first day of school.” He was awake suddenly, bolting upright and glancing around wildly. 

“Am I late?” 

“No,” Niles smiled and then looked pensive. “Luke, I have some bad news.” 

“What happened?” He thought about his stash of blasters and his bug-out bag. 

“Your father was called away on urgent business, and your mother was summoned by the a…unfortuante tragedy that struck last night.” 

“What happened?” 

“A speeder wrecked into a side of a building. They called her in to deal with the sudden influx of injured. I’m sorry, Luke, they aren’t here right now.” 

Luke almost felt like throwing himself back on his bed and throwing a screaming fit. He wanted to cry and then curse and then blame everyone else. He didn’t, only looked around and felt devastated. 

“I know they would have been here if they could have.” 

They turned as a noise broke through the room and his parents stomped into his room. Jifus, still in full hair, crown, and make-up as well as operating scrubs. Vader, wearing his usual armor. 

“Luke.” Vader thundered, and Niles stepped away. 

“Father, Niles said you were gone.” 

“I am about to leave.” Vader waved Niles away. The butler looked excited to leave. Jifus rushed across the room to pull Luke into a hug. He could smell blood and vomit. 

“I’m so sorry, Luke,” he stared at her; she looked exhausted. “But we can’t take you to school today as we wanted. I only got a twenty-minute break. Kit’s ship is waiting for him at the hyperspace jump-point. We just wanted to be here to make sure you didn’t think we abandoned you or something.” 

“I was upset,” he admitted, and she kissed his forehead. He was swamped with the scent of anti-specific cleaners. “I wasn’t mad at you.” He looked at his father who moved to sit on the bed, just inches past his feet. “Thanks for coming, even if it’s only for a little bit.” 

“You are our son,” the Sith rumbled. Luke swallowed down a sudden lump in his throat. He nodded as he brushed away at the beginnings of tears. 

“I saw your dance. You were really great.” 

“Thanks,” Jifus beamed and kissed his forehead again. “I have to go now. Be good at school and do the stuff you’re supposed to. I really have to go. Bye, Kit.” She was gone a moment later, and Luke twisted his blankets between his fingers. 

“As she said, behave,” Vader ordered, and Luke nodded slowly. “When I return we shall revisit the subject of flying.” 

“Alright.” Luke watched his father follow his mother’s footsteps. He wasn’t sure what to do now. Niles poked his head through his door.

“Luke, please get dressed. Your breakfast is waiting.” 

“Alright,” he pushed his blankets back and finally got out of bed. As he dressed, he watched the news stories load on his datapad. The speeder wreck was headline news. There were some pretty disturbing images and one, the front image of the article, of his mother. She looked the same as she had a second ago, this time, covered in blood. It was a pretty intimidating picture. It was sad to read that the body count was still updating and he felt pretty selfish for wanting his mother to be there on his first day of school. 

In other news, the stock was down. A few short stories about military action on the mid-rim. Then, a ton of news sites seemed to be taking out a bite out of gossip rags. There were hundreds of pictures of his parents at the ball. Some of them talking, sometimes dancing. There were lists of the best dressed, Jifus at the top, and lists of the worst dressed, his father. 

“Niles!” He joined the man in the kitchen as he set his backpack on the floor and tried to straighten his uniform. “How do I look?” 

“You look very good, young lord.” Niles gestured to the place on the table as Deno emerged from the pantry holding a basket of fruit. “Look, Deno.”

“Very handsome, young master.” Deno said, “Are you ready?”

Luke nodded and scarfed down his breakfast as fast as he was able. He shouldn’t be nervous, but he was. He knew he was ready for his classes and his work and the reactions of the people around him. 

“Can we go?” He asked, rushed as he dumped his bowl into the dishwasher and turned to the two men, “I want to make sure that I’m early.” 

“Early,” Niles sighed, “is a good idea. Which speeder do you want to take?” 

“Um, the usual one,” Luke said, confused. He watched Niles’ expression turn tired. 

“Luke, you remember the lessons we have on society manner, correct?” 

“Yeah.” The Butler led him through the residence and toward the hanger.

“Do you have your school padd and such ready?” 

“Yeah.” 

“Don’t forget to try and make friends. It can be difficult sometimes, but I’m confident you can do it.” 

“Thanks.” 

The school wasn’t too far away from the residence, only a twenty-minute flight during which Luke got more and more annoyed. 

He was a thief. A very good thief. Was he even sure he could sit in a school and become a normal civilian? He had parents, and he was a son, and he was willingly putting himself under the control of two people. He was almost vibrating in place by the time they reached the academy drop off point. Luke wished he could let these insecurities go. He wished he didn’t feel so divided about being a son. It had been so easy on Lothal.

“Luke.” He jerked to see Jinn shift into existence. The older man seemed tired, more tired than usual. “Do you remember the trick I taught you, about hiding yourself in plain sight?”

He glanced to Niles and wondered why the man didn’t seem concerned by the sudden presence of a blue ghost. Luke nodded and stared at the enormous man who sighed, relieved. 

“Remember to use it, Luke. It will keep you safe.” Jinn vanished, and Luke wondered what the man meant. Usually, when he offered such proclamations, it meant that Luke was in trouble. 

“Err,” stared at Niles who landed easily and turned around to Luke. 

“Are you ready?” 

“Yeah.” 

“You’ll do just fine, young lord.” The door opened, and Luke gave the butler a thumbs up before climbing down. He found himself on an enormous landing pad where other speeders were pulling up, dumping their cargo, and taking off again. A lot of the children and teenagers moved in clusters, some siblings and some not. Unlike an academy, there were lots of aliens among them. 

He adjusted his backpack and moved through the enormous front doors and found the lobby to be just as beautiful and fantastic as it had been the first time. The severe-looking administrator was standing in front of the desk; her eyes flickered from student to student. Luke grimaced when her eyes landed on him. Her lekku, longer than most her age, twitched in a way that meant she wanted him to come to her. 

“Yes, ma’am?” He edged up, feeling a little nervous. 

“I did not summon you.” She said slowly, her expression stern and Luke shrugged.

“Um, your lekku, you made the ‘attend to me’ motion. Didn’t you wanted to speak to me?” 

“Hmm,” if she was surprised that he could read lekku, she didn’t show it. “Yes, do you have your papers?” 

“Yeah,” he pulled the flimsi of information of how to find his homeroom and lunchroom from his pocket. “Here.” 

She accepted it and then she nodded. “You’re in Dr. Innis’ class; you need to find the third level. It’ll be the fifth door on the right; there will be a sign on the door.” 

“Thank you,” Luke said as she passed the flimsi back, “how are you?” 

‘Well enough,” she said and pointed to the wide hallway, “you may want to get started. Turbolifts are on your right; stairs are just before them.” 

“Thank you,” he repeated and took off for the stairs. As he moved, he did as he usually did. He cataloged the people moving through. What they wore, age, looks, identifying features and if they were related to someone important. It was a skill he’d picked up while living with Gohan. It had helped him more times than he wanted to admit to the blue alien. 

“Why do you do that?” He jerked around, halfway up the stairs, to see a tall boy leaning against the railing. 

“Huh?” 

“You move like a soldier.” The boy seemed familiar; he had a square jaw and dark eyes. Luke squinted at him, almost able to place a name. 

“What?”

“My dad was a soldier; he taught me how to do what you’re doing?” 

“What am I doing?” 

“Identifying people, kill spots, exits, hiding places; I do it too but usually not so…inconspicuously.” 

“Apparently not enough if you can see it,” Luke stared up as the teenager got closer, he was taller than Luke, dark too. 

“I know what to look for.” The boy seemed to consider for a second, “Jaimi.”

“Luke.” 

“You’re first day here, Luke?” 

“Yeah.” He reminded Luke of someone, but he couldn’t remember who. 

“So you’re a shiny?” 

“Um,” the crowds moved around them, “I guess.” 

“Come on,” Jaimi jerked his head toward the upper levels, “do you know how to find your homeroom?” 

“Yeah, err, the administrator told me where to go. How long have you been here?” 

“Two years.” Jaimi’s superior bulk and height meant they moved through the jostling throng of students, “where you from?” 

“Outer rim, but I moved to Imperial Center two months ago. So, where do you come from?” 

“Which side? My mom’s from Mandalore, and my pops is from Kamino via Mandalore.”

“I didn’t think Mandalore liked the Core. What are you doing here?” 

“Well, long story and not one I want to share.” Jaimi and Luke emerged onto the fifth level of the school. “If you want to find me I’m usually in the conservatory during breaks.” 

“Okay,” Luke waved to the taller boy as he vanished into the crowd and wondered if someone had pegged him already. He didn’t seem to identify him as Lord Vader’s son, more of a person of interest. 

Still, he looked into his classroom and wondered what could happen. 

34343

The leaders of Zuden were a fairly straightforward people. Farmers, artisans, metal-workers. They were a people used to being ignored by the galaxy at large. 

“Never had a king before.” The loose collection of men and women that represented the people of Zuden seemed confused. 

“I know,” Ezra stared at them. Finally, the oldest man spoke. 

“You know, the people who owned the deed to our planet was some rich moff; didn’t do anything with us. Now, I know you got the deed, and you can do whatever you want but if you try and screw up over we’re going to burn up your fancy palace with you in it. “

“Right, that’s fair.” Ezra didn’t dare look to Gohan. “I’m not going to ruin your planet or home. I promise you.” 

“I do like the new university,” someone called. The crowd split to reveal a younger man, who shrugged. “If we wanted to go to school before we had to go off-world and that was so expensive. Tuition, moving, transportation, and now we’ve got a real university on-world that we can totally afford. Um, hi.” He bowed to Ezra, “I’m Din, unwilling mayor of Seven Rivers Juncture. Also a new student at the University of Zuden.”

“I’m happy to know that you like some of the new additions,” Ezra said.

“I have an issue.” An old woman said, “If Zuden is going to be improving with all these new school and such, we get to be a part of it. I notice you’ve got no one from Zuden in your palace. No Zuden on your advisor's staff, not even subscribed to the Zuden newsletter.” 

“You’re right,” Ezra said and knew Gohan would kick him later for this, “which is why you’re all here. It is important that everybody has a part of the work in building the new parts of Zuden. I know you may be uncomfortable with all the strangers suddenly having a say in your lives. I only want to help Zuden, to do that I need to help of every citizen.” They didn’t seem impressed, but they didn’t seem as annoyed as before. “Now, what did you have for me, today?” 

“There’s a well down in the southern parts of my town, needs unblocking.” Someone said. 

#$#$#

“So you’re Prince Vader.” The exclamation is loud, excited and draws the attention of everyone in the classroom. 

Luke, who had managed to make it this far without being spotted or noticed, grimaced. 

“Hi,” he waved to his classmates, “what’s up?” 

“Meeko, we do not shout in class,” Dr. Innis scolded. Meeko sank back into her seat, blushing. “Do you have something to add, Luke?” 

“Nope.” He stared at his classmates as much as they seemed to gape at him. 

“I realize that this may a shock to all of you,” the teacher said, “but we are working in this classroom, not gossiping. If you want to speak to Luke, you will have to wait until after class.”

Meeko was the last person to turn away and Luke, with a jolt, figured out why. She was Tarkin’s oldest granddaughter; she’d probably heard about the prince who’d taken her potential claim to the throne. 

“Miss Meeko, turn around and sit down,” Dr. Innis told her. She obeyed reluctantly, still staring at Luke and eventually, the attention turned to what to do in case of a fire. 

Unfortunately, Luke was mobbed pretty much as soon as the bell rang. His classmates crowded around his desk.

“So you’re Prince Vader?” A dozen or so sets of eyes focused on him and Luke nodded slowly. 

“What’s that like?” Someone asked.

“It’s fine.” 

“What’s he like as a father?” Meeko Tarkin demanded, she was nearly sitting on his desk, and Luke shrugged. 

“Um, he’s like a parent…I don’t have a frame a reference for normal parents.”

“Is that because you were a stormtrooper?” Meeko asked. A few of the students blanched and leaned away. 

“I was a cadet,” he corrected, “and yeah, pretty much.” 

“Well, my papa is the best papa.” Meeko tossed her hair and looked to their classmates.

“It isn’t a competition,” Luke told her, and she seemed annoyed, “why are you all hounding me anyway? Why aren’t you bothering her?” 

“Because my father isn’t…Vader.” She said, rolling her eyes. “He’s just an artist. You know, a soulful writer and poet type.” Luke wondered what had attracted the younger lady Tarkin, a hard science master, to a fruity artist. He wondered if the Grand Moff had had a seething fit at marrying his daughter to someone he probably hated. “Tell us about him.” 

“No,” Luke prided himself on usually having a lot of patience, but he was getting annoyed at being the fish in the fishbowl. “You're really rude and annoying. Don’t you have something to do?” 

“It’s the first day of class; we don’t have any studying to do.” 

A few of the other students began to break off, and Luke stared at Meeko Tarkin with a frown, “you’re not going to go away, are you?” 

“No,” she beamed, “I am super curious. Let’s go take our break together.” 

“I’m already meeting someone.” He said, and she sighed explosively.

“Geez! I know when I’m not wanted.” She turned around and stalked off; Luke stared after her, a little confused. Seeing his chance, he grabbed his jacket and fled the room. He made down to the lobby, the buildings juncture point and skidded to a halt. 

Someone tall, in gray and black armor, was already standing there. The desk clerk looked terrified as the intimidating figure leaned over her. 

“Hello,” the lobby was pretty much abandoned, which was odd all things considering. Students were in the hallways, watching the scene with fascinated eyes. Most of them looked scared too. 

“Little Prince,” it was a female voice, the angled mask turned to him, and Luke almost felt like he was standing in front of his father. Except his father was about a thousand times more intimidating. This weirdo was just a person with too much authority, and they were getting arrogant. 

“I am Prince Luke,” Luke told the stranger firmly, “why are you terrifying that woman?” 

“It is always so much easier when my prey comes to me.” There were some buzzing and Luke watched two little droids float above the heads of the crowds and land on the woman’s shoulder. He finally recognized the circle on her belt, a lightsaber. “Little Prince, I’m here to fetch you.” 

“Why?” He didn’t flinch as the stranger stalked closer; her intimidating tactics were basic and boring. To illustrate this, he yawned lazily and stretched his arms, eventually settling into a pose that his father would call insolent. 

“Someone wants to talk to you.” 

“A lot of someones do,” Luke said, “who are you just to be the little…puppy?”

“I am the Seventh Sister.” The woman seethed. 

“Dinners must be awkward if your parents just called you numbers.”

“I am an Inquisitor!” Luke rolled his eyes. 

“I thought they kept the religious nuts out of schools. I’m not looking for a god or salvation.” 

“The Emperor demands to speak with you,” the woman finally screeched, she yanked a hand back, like she was going to hit him but paused. Luke stared at her steadily, daring her to make a move. Daring her to something so stupid. “Now.” 

“Why didn’t you say so?” Luke asked, “we could have avoided a lot of confusion is you weren’t trying to be so cute.” 

“Cute?” There was outrage in her voice, and Luke thought it was probably because she was expecting to meet some scared, terrified child. 

“Are we going?” Luke asked, he didn’t fear for himself, but he could feel the choking terror his classmates. Security was coming, and he could tell that the administrator was approaching so he waved to the door, “don’t want to keep that someone waiting.”

#$#$#$

Since Ezra hadn’t managed to screw up his first meetings with the Zuden mayors, Gohan felt confident enough to comm her co-conspirators. 

The meeting was short, uneventful, and mostly to calm her jitters. 

“My contact is en-route to Naboo now,” the queen said, “we will be discussing the matter of Imperial ignorance. They are high of a rank that work will be successful.” 

“Remember, young one,” Kitsters hologram turned to the queen, “do not reveal that you work for another party. Your contact may believe that they are a leading force, but they cannot know of the rest of us.” 

“Of course,” the queen, not irritated by Kitster’s gentle reminder, nodded. 

“I do have a lead on Gentleman,” Gohan said after a moment. “He’s got a nightclub, big one; and it looks like he’s taking over a bunch of gangs. I don’t have any other information from that, but I’ll move my rebel contact into the area.” 

“He is also a fashion designer.” The queen said, and Gohan blinked a few times. 

“What?”

“He recently designed a gown that has gained galactic awe. It was worn by Lady Vader at a recent gala.” Gohan stared and felt her face twisted into frustrated anger. 

“What is the guy doing! Doesn’t he know that people are trying to stalk him?” 

“He also, I am told, has a presentation in a few weeks.” 

“Do you,” Gohan paused as she considered this, “watch the gossip news from the Core.”

“No!” The queen denied, blushing, “I have secret agents as well.” 

“Your handmaidens, who all watch the gossip new. Soap operas and gossip? Really?” 

“I am not ashamed of it,” the queen blushed, “it is important to have something you can relax with. I am a fan of fashion.” 

“I’ll bet,” Gohan winked at her, “have fun.” She disconnected the call as Kitster began to chuckle. It wasn’t patronizing, Kitster could never be patronizing, but parental. The sort of laugh friends had with another. 

#$#$#

Grand Moff Tarkin had expected Prince Vader to be a little taller. He honestly didn’t expect the boy to be so young and short. The inquisitor that escorted him through the throne room doors wasn’t the one who’d retrieved him. As the tall alien sank to his knee, Prince Luke looked around the room, awed. 

“Hi,” bright blue eyes focused on the Emperor and Tarkin, “how are you?” 

Awkward, so awkward. 

“I am well enough, young Prince.” The Emperor extended a hand and motioned for the blond to come closer. “This meeting has been a long time coming.” 

“I guess.” He glanced down at the kneeling inquisitor and then moved closer to the old man, “but it couldn’t have waited a little longer? I’m supposed to be in class right now.” 

“Of course, my apologies.” The emperor said, “however, I have many pressing matters to attend to for the sake of the Empire.” The unusually gentle reprimand should have made the prince blush or be embarrassed but, like most teenagers that Tarkin knew, he didn’t seem to notice. “Tell me, young Prince, how are you?” Prince Luke blinked and shrugged in the noncommittal way that Tarkin’s granddaughters had picked up from their classmates. It was an intensely frustrating gesture because it could mean anything. “Hmm, come with me, young man.” They moved from the throne room and into the enormous conservatory where a table had been set for tea. The Emperor took a seat, and Tarkin and Luke joined him. “I understand you have been with your parents for two months now.” 

“Yeah..uh, yes. Two months.” 

“How do you find them?” 

“Usually by shouting their names really loud,” Luke said, and his faint grin vanished in the crushed silence that followed. “That was a joke.” Tarkin stared at him blankly; the Emperor seemed too surprised to say anything. “I thought it was funny.” 

“Your parents?” Tarkin prompted, and the boy shrugged. 

“I like them, they’re a little busy, but I guess they have to be. A lot of people rely on them.” 

“Of course,” Sheev watched the boy blinked a few times. 

“Aren’t you going to drink tea?” He asked, “do you need help?” 

“I do not,” Palpatine’s narrowed eyes met the boys, and the blond didn’t even flinch. He held up the teacup with a frown and then sighed. “Governor.” Tarkin prepared a small pot of tea, annoyed at the blond, and as it steeped, they stared at each other. “How is your mother?” 

“She’s busy today. I heard about the speeder wreck, and she’s one of the best out there, so it makes sense that she’s off helping people.” Luke was glancing at the cookies, as if he wanted one but didn’t dare reach for it. 

“And your father?” 

“Uh, he’s gone on some trip. I don’t know what he’s doing.” 

“I was under the impression he was meeting with a few business associates.” Sheev supplied, and the young teenager shrugged. “Tell me; you were a stormtrooper cadet, correct.” 

“Yes, I was.” Luke was frustratingly quiet; he didn’t volunteer information ad he hadn’t drunk his tea which was laced with a low dose truth serum. Just enough to make the boy feel giddy and talkative.

“Where did you meet your father?” 

“On Lothal.” Luke drummed his heels against the ground and looked around the conservatory, “I like your garden,” he said politely. 

“My gardeners put great effort into it,” Palpatine considered the boy. “Do you enjoy your home, even living with people such as your parents?” Luke frowned at the emperor, displaying more courage than Tarkin had seen from anyone in years.

“What do you mean, people like my parents?” 

“You don’t know?” Tarkin watched the emperor savor the moment, “your mother's past alcoholism and your fathers…various crimes.” 

“Oh, that?” Every bit of air was sucked from the room as the teenager rolled his eyes, “I thought you meant something important.” Tarkin gaped. “They told me that when I was first adopted. Communication between family members is very important, you know. It says so in all of the books.” 

“Perhaps I will have a conversation with your father about instilling you with the proper respect for authority, boy.” Palpatine glowered at the blond who was still staring at the garden, “such insolence. Surely your father does not tolerate it.” 

“Tolerate what?” He blinked rapidly. 

“Insolence.” Tarkin was almost amused at the scene. He hadn’t expected the boy to collapse into a gibbering mess but to see such attitude and fire was still annoying.

“No, Father is very strict.” 

“Then why would you believe I ought to tolerate it?” Sheev asked, and Luke stared, confused. 

“Tolerate what?” 

“Insolence,” the emperor seethed, “do not play stupid, child. Your father would not have chosen without purpose. He did not simply see you on the street and chose you. He has an ulterior motive.” 

“What insolence?” Tarkin thought maybe the boy would be confused, so he interjected. 

“You rolled your eyes at the Emperor,” he said stiffly, “and implied that what he said was of little importance.” 

“Excuse you,” the depths of Luke’s annoyance was apparent when his voice fell flat, and he turned to the grand moff, “are you dating him? Does he need you to explain himself? No, then shut up.” He turned back to the emperor. “That wasn’t insolence. Well, it wasn’t totally insolence. You can’t pretend to act like your revealing a terrible, horrible secret with the obvious wish to try and disrupt my home life and not expect me not to notice. What was the point of that anyway?” It had been so long since Tarkin had seen anyone unwilling to deal with manipulation, tolerate misdirection, so much so that they’d cut to the chase and expose all of the uncomfortable truths that people wanted to hide. He hadn’t seen anyone steamroll over this much manipulation since Anakin Skywalker stomped around the Senate halls. Before he was Darth Vader. 

“Perhaps you are better matched with your father than I initially believed.” The Emperor sighed and sipped his tea. “Though, I will be speaking to him.” 

“Then maybe he’ll send you the bill for the time I’ve missed in class,” Luke said. Tarkin nearly choked on his tea.

“You’re finished.” Sheev snapped, apparently having reached the end of his tolerance for the Prince, “out.” Luke stood, set his teacup down, and walked from the conservatory with every sign of dignity. 

He left the palace and found himself on unfamiliar streets surrounded by unfamiliar buildings. His backpack was still at school, but Luke never left the residence without enough credits to rent a speeder and fly himself home. 

He felt shaky and scared, some lingering sense of terror told him to find a hiding place and to not come out. Luke flagged down an air-speeder and clambered in. 

“Grid 6 General Hospital, please.” He said. 

“You’re supposed to be in school, kid. I recognize that uniform.” 

“I know, but I have to talk to my mother. It’s important.” 

“Important enough to skip school?” 

“I got pulled out, just go.” 

“Alright.” The driver glanced at him, “you alright, you look shaken.” 

“Someone just tried to kidnap me so no, I’m a little freaked.”

“Want me to call someone.” 

“I’m trying to get to my mother.” Luke stressed, “can you please go?”

“Sure,” the pilot slid the air-speeder into traffic and began to decent to grid 6. Luke fiddled and stressed and wished that someone was there he could trust. 

Of course, the Emperor had waited until both his parents were busy or off-planet before meeting Luke. He probably pulled him out of school just to prove that he could, and no one could do anything. It scared Luke more than he wanted to admit. After a short flight, the taxi came to a halt beside the general admittance side of the building.

“Alright, kid. You owe me about fifteen credits.” The man glanced at the mirror and Luke leaned up to pay him. 

“I owe you twenty.” 

“I took five off because you looked a little freaked and needed an escape. Go on, kid. Go find your mom.” 

“You’re a little too trusting. I could be lying to you.” 

“I’ve been a cab driver for years, kid. I know when people are lying to me, you get going before I stick those five credits back on.” 

“Thanks,” Luke said heartfully, and he climbed from the taxi. 

There were a disturbing number of bloodstains being cleaned from the duracreet ground. There was a cleaning crew sweeping up a bunch of used bandages and needles and various other tools. He picked his way past them to get to the door and eased his way in.

It was packed and busy on the inside. People were still lined up against the walls and hallways in stretchers and wheelchairs. Some of them were asleep; some looked bored, almost everyone turned to look at him. 

“Can I help you, young man?” A tall kel-dor in doctors scrubs asked, Luke stared at his tusks and calculated that he must have been about five hundred years old. 

“Yes, I’m looking for Dr. Piett. Um, I need to talk to her.”

“Dr. Piett,” the kel-dor didn’t give a visible reaction, but he seemed to stare longer at Luke, “who is calling?” 

“Um, me. I’m Luke; she’s my mom.” 

“Ah! You’re Luke! Fantastic.” The doctor clapped his hands, “I’ve wanted to meet you. Come, come, her office is this way.” 

“Thanks.” Luke followed after the alien, “um, do you know where she is right now?” 

“She’s in the middle of surgery, a little emergency, I’m afraid. I don’t know when she’ll be done but I’ll send her to you as soon as.” Something beeped and he the man produced a pager. He frowned. “DJ!” A dopey looking medical student turned the corner, beaming. 

“Did someone call the intern with the best hair?” 

“DJ, please take young Luke to Dr. Peitt’s office.” Luke glanced at the human student and then at the doctor. “He’ll only tell you stories about his hair and best friend, don’t fear him.” 

“Come on! All aboard the Awesome Train!” Luke followed the intern and wondered if the guy had drunk enough caf to lose base with reality or if he was just weird. He managed to tune out the intern until they reached his mother’s office where he ducked inside. DJ wandered off, joined by an equally dopy looking twi’lek. 

He dropped to the floor and sighed deeply. Here, at least, was friendly turf. Her office was cluttered with medical texts, notes, flimsi, empty caf mugs, medical charts, files, stacks of information packets. On the wall behind her desk was a propaganda poster of Darth Vader with the word ‘babe’ written at the bottom. 

“Wow.” On the other wall was an enormous puzzle of a lush forest landscape. 

“R2, I don’t need someone to walk me around the building,” Luke turned around and peaked out the glass of the door. “I can go on my own.” There was a string of astromech beeping, Luke jumped to his feet and was out the door in a second. “I don’t know what you just said, but you’re wrong.” The girl's voice was quiet, and Luke waited for the droid to buzz some more. 

[I am here to help, little angel.] Luke peeked around the door frame to see a short, brown-haired girl climb back onto a bed and lay back looking drained. At her side was a blue and white astromech, an old model and obviously one that had been around long enough to develop a personality. 

“Hi!” Luke said. The droid whirled around, and the girl sat up, peering at him. 

“Hello?” She glanced at his uniform, “who are you?”

“I’m Luke; I heard you astromech. Hi,” he said to the droid. It stared and said nothing. “Who are you?” 

“I am Princess Leia Organa,” she straightened, “this is my droid, R2-D2.”

[Companion and guardian] R2 beeped.

“He says he’s your companion and guardian,” Luke repeated, and they both stared, shocked. “What? It’s just binary; it’s not hard to understand.” 

“Well,” Leia sank back to her blankets, “yeah, he is my companion. Well, my father’s.”

[I work for Senator Organa. No one owns me.] 

Luke stared at the droid and slowly repeated what he said, to Leia. The princess seemed confused, but she nodded. “Then how come you’re always here? With me? How come you listen to him?”

[Protection of the Little Angel is priority mission] Artoo buzzed. 

Luke grinned, and Leia blushed. “Why do you call me a little angel?” The waited for the droid to answer. Artoo seemed to hum to himself.

[Classified]

“Huh.” Luke watched the droid buzz at them before moving back to his charging station. “Has he always been like that?” 

“I had a lot of nanny droids when I was little,” Leia said, “I always remembered Artoo though. He’s always been there for me. I didn’t think I’d see him again when I came to the hospital.” She smiled fondly at the droid. “Who are you again?” 

“Luke, um. I’m waiting for my mother?” 

“Is she a patient?” 

“No. She’s a doctor.” The girl stared at him. “Dr. Piett.” 

“You’re Luke!” Leia clapped her hands and then seemed to yank her passion down and smother it. “Oh, you’re Luke?”

“She talks about me?” 

“Yes.”

“Oh boy,” Luke covered his face, “What does she say?” 

“Only nice things,” Leia assured him, “besides, it’s nice. It’s almost like having a sibling. She might not have told you about me, but I’m her long-term patient.” 

“She doesn’t really talk about her work with me.” Luke admitted, “she has mentioned you though, not much about you but I did read in the news that you were sick.” 

“Sick, yeah.” Leia sighed, and Luke climbed up to sit on her bed. “What are you doing here? That’s a school uniform, why aren’t you at school?” 

“I’m escaping,” Luke told her, “I got briefly kidnapped and made of fool of myself.”

“Oh, as long as your back now.” Leia smiled, and Luke felt something click. 

“Do you want to hang out while I wait? You don’t have too, but I thought it might be better than sitting here, alone.” 

“I don’t mind being alone,” Leia said, “it would be nice to have someone my age to talk to though. Do you like puzzles?”

Luke grinned and laughed, “mom gave you a bunch of puzzles too? She has so many spread out in our house. There’s this really big one that takes up a big part of the ball-room. What’s this one of?” 

“Well, if you do puzzles at home that might be a bit dumb to do them here.” Leia patted the spot beside her. Luke scooted over to sit, and he leaned over her shoulder as she pulled out a datapad and flicked it on. “This is from your mom. It’s got a lot of books and shows, old ones. The kind of stuff that’s been banned by the Empire.”

“Nice.” 

“I’ve been watching a detective show, called the Flatfoot. It’s about a twi’lek detective. She’s the smart one on the show, I mean, this is old stuff. Back when they still made shows and films in 2D and not as holograms.” 

“I like a lot of those,” Luke said, “but they’ve been banned.” 

“I know, which is what makes this so much fun. Here, look, do you want to watch the first episode of Flatfoot?”

“Yes!” 

It was hours later before his mother approached, looking drawn and sleepy. She poked her head into Leia’s room while they were on episode three and nodded. 

“Luke?” She asked the blond looked up, and Leia squeaked. “Hello, Leia, I hope my son wasn’t bothering you.” 

“No, we were watching Flatfoot.” 

“Mom! Why haven’t you showed me this before? This is amazing!” Luke exclaimed, “this is so much better than Love Against Intelligence.” 

“I still can’t believe you watch that show.” Leia rolled her eyes, and Luke huffed. 

“Luke, come here. Princess, I’ll be back in a moment.” 

“Alright!” They two hugged and separated. Luke followed his mother to her office and related what had happened at school and then at the palace. 

“The school called me as soon as you left with the inquisitor.” Jifus looked around for a clear place to sit on and eventually leaned against the door. “Son, you need to remember everything about that conversation because when your father gets back.”

“I’m going to be grounded for eternity.”

“Eh,” she shrugged, “you’re going to bed early. I don’t like that he thinks only your father is involved in the parenting or that he’s the only one who disciplines you. Just…remember what you said to them, word for word, alright?”

“Why?” 

“Because,” Jifus shook her head, “just because. Now, it was smart for you to leave the school, knowing that you were outmatched and putting students at risk. Luke, I don’t like it. If this ever happens again.”

“Mom, that Seventh Sister was crazy,” Luke said, “she was…insane. I could feel it. I didn’t want her around civilians longer than she needed to be.” Jifus surveyed him and gestured for a hug. He obeyed, leaning into her side and closing his eyes as she seemed to make everything feel better. “I was scared. I don’t like any of them.” 

“I’m sorry that happened, Luke,” Jifus said, her grip tightened.

“No one got hurt, at least.” 

“You called Tarkin the Emperor’s boyfriend.” 

“He had it coming.” He felt her stomach shake in a way that meant that she was laughing. 

“What do you think of the princess?” He looked up, not sure how to describe how right it felt to be sitting next to her and watching an old show about a detective. How amazing it was to see her smile and what it was like to be in her gravitational pull. It wasn’t a crush; it was something more. Like the entire universe was in the right place when they were beside each other. “I like her,” Luke said, and Jifus laughed. “Mom…what the Emperor said…he told me that.” 

“Yeah,” he met her eyes, “I was an alcoholic. I don’t really want to talk about.” Luke nodded. 

“I knew.”

“How?” 

“I…recognize the signs, um, and at your wedding, you didn’t eat anything. I guess because it was all cooked with alcohol.” 

“Yeah,” she nodded, smiling briefly, “I raided the kitchen in my gown. I think I got red sauce on it.” 

“I knew, and that’s why I just. Mom, where you are going to tell me?” 

“Maybe one day, when you were older,” Jifus sighed, “when I…when you were….when you didn’t. I don’t know. I was weak when I drank. It was the only way to drown out the…noise.” Screams. She would have said screams. The ghost of the unrealized word settled on Luke’s shoulders. “The memories, I couldn’t feel…anything when I drank, and that’s why. Oh, Luke, I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“I’m sorry.” Before she could detach herself, he squeezed tight, “I’m sorry, Mom.” 

“It isn’t…wasn’t…don’t you have something you’re supposed to be doing right now?” 

“No.” 

“Do you,” she considered him, “want to spend some more time with Leia?”

“Yes!” He brightened, “we can watch some more episodes.” 

“Alright,” she gave him a gentle swat to his shoulder, “Go on, but behave.” 

“Sure thing.” Luke bounced off, feeling better than he had in ages. 

#$#$#

Queen Apindala stared up at Darth Vader, considering how to phrase her next few words. “Lord Vader, do you trust me?” The man seemed to jolt, he turned slowly and considered her. 

“You are wise beyond your years, and possess peerless integrity and honor.” 

“Perhaps,” she was blushing under her make-up, “however, I cannot think of a single political way to speak my next few words. I need…our people need you to…ignore what may happen.” 

“What may happen?” 

“I am implementing a new plan in our operations, one that will be, perhaps, noisy.”

“Plans you have not seen fit to consult with me?”

“Plausible deniability. When it comes to the emperor, it is wisest to ere on the side of caution.”

“I would never disagree, majesty.” Vader sighed. “I am ignorant in this matter.” Whatever it wash, he didn’t want or need to know. 

“Are you well, Lord Vader? I understand that you have…had a strange few months. How is the doctor?” 

“The doctor is well.” Vader pondered a question, “is it possible, young queen, that I may hold two in my heart?” 

“Two?” She stared at him and seemed to struggle for an answer, “I…do you have affection for the doctor.” 

They found their way through the southernmost edge of the garden as Vader considered his answer. “I believe so.” 

“What is she like?” 

“She is…a living contradiction. Loud and furious, but passionate about her work. Dedicated to even the most simple details and…caring for every being she meets. She is boundless energy and eternal exhaustion. She had broken and picked herself back together, many times and has yet to fall to the temptations and crimes that would be offered to her.”

“Do you enjoy her company?” 

“I do.” They paused in front of a fountain. 

“Then I don’t think you are losing any of your love for my predecessor, sir. You are,” the queen pondered the question. “growing. By asking this, you’ve proven that you are not shrinking your affection for one but expanding your heart to encompass more.”

“Are you speaking from experience, young queen?” 

“I.” Apindala blushed and turned away, “perhaps I have met someone.” 

“Indeed.” 

“She is very strange and very...foreign. I imagine that she sees me as a fool, or a means to an end.” 

“Perhaps not.” 

“It is silly admiration. A crush,” the teenager seem surprised to be admitting her crush, “she is very flirtatious though. Some of it is crass but some of it…poetic. I do not imagine anything will happen, but in light of our heavy responsibilities, it is nice to dream.” 

“The future remains in motion, majesty. Do not discount what could happen.” 

“True.” 

“Before this dissolves into gossip,” Vader said, “we should return. The fools will understand that we are still discussing the business.” 

“I hated to pull such nasty tricks, Lord Vader, but we did need to speak.” 

“I am not angry.” He told her, “I understood your intention as soon as the news came through.” 

The teenager nodded, “Lord Vader, how is Ryoo Naberrie doing. Her family is very concerned for her. “

“They need not be. She is well.”

“I will inform them.” The fallen Jedi and the Queen looped around the garden once more before heading into the throne room, where an Imperial communications officer stood. 

“My lord,” he bowed to the queen, “your majesty.” 

“What do you want?” Vader demanded, and the small man shook even harder. 

“A message from Lady Vader has come through. Sir,” he held out a small piece of flimsi.”

Vader didn’t bother with niceties, he yanked the note from the man via the Force, and read that cramped lettering. They must have transcribed it for her. 

Husband, we need to talk about who can pull Luke from class.

He froze. 

The emperor had pulled Luke from class? Taken him from his school? It was an insult, a sign of mocking, to show that no one could stop him. Vader seethed quietly. 

“Whatever your plans are, majesty,” he snarled, “make them soon.” He stomped from the throne room, planning furiously.


	29. Make it work!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Agent Banaka snoops a little too much.   
>  A runway show and Cassian gets into trouble.   
> Gohan needs more entertainment than her work.

By the time that Vader returned to his secondary home, dressed as Gentleman, he was ready to fall over and sleep for eternity. The house was beautiful but empty, Tove having chosen to keep an apartment near the nightclub, and Dhara was always so conscious of how much sleep she got every night. 

It was nice not having to hound three teenagers over healthy sleeping habits. Ryoo, whose studying kept her up. Luke, who might suffer insomnia but probably was engaged in criminal activities. Having Dhara get herself to bed was a nice change of pace. 

He wasn’t sure she’d appreciate it, but he still checked on her. Half to ensure she was uninjured or getting herself in trouble, and half to ease his frantic mind. His son was at the mercy of the Emperor, to have him yanked from his life to satisfy a sadistic desire to mock him, it made him nervous. He could not return to Imperial Center so soon after his meeting with the queen. 

Someone was safe. Someone was safe in his house, ignorant of the truth and lost to her first family, but Dhara was safe. 

She slept deeply, sequestered under half a dozen blankets. A loth-cat, apparently a new addition to the household, was sitting on her head and chewing on its paws. 

Vader sighed and returned to his workroom. There was little else to do except for work. 

#$#$#

No one ever filed missing persons report anymore. They relied on bounty hunters and criminals, and hardly anyone ever went to the proper authorities. Agent Banaka frowned as her search program went through each report that might have matched her missing teenager. 

“Hey.” She turned in her cubicle, discreetly covering one of her sketches. Another ISB agent was leaning against the gray partition; his pupils were blown wide, and he smelled of drugs. “You got any snacks?”

“Depends?” Banaka pulled a greasy take-out container of fries from her drawer. The sort of take-out that made someone’s heart solidify at the sight of it. Eating it probably calcified them. “How clever are you going to be today?” 

“Clever as you want, baby.” He was focused on the fries. “What have you got?” 

“Missing person case, three years old. Tell me, what planet has a lot of sun, a shit-ton of sand, too many criminals and sad, dirt scratching moisture farmers?” 

“Shit, man.” Agent Toto slouched further in his jacket and seemed to be fade in the effects of his drugs. “That’s Jakku…uh…Jedha, that one with those rebels, um…that one where Jabba the Hutt used to live. You know, Tatooine or something.” Toto made a grabbing motion for the fries. “Come on, give me some. I was up to my knees in a triple homicide all damn weekend. Shit, it was the worst. I hate my job.”

“I heard about it.” 

“Not great, bounty hunters I can see. Those guys are professional. This was…sick. It was sick.”

“You need a better coping mechanism for this.” She told him, “I think the best option is probably Jakku. I’ll have to canvas the planet and…nevermind.” She turned to her pile of files and began flipping through them. “Two years ago, Jabba the Hutt was tossed into his own Rancor pit.”

“You doin’ some pro-bono work?” Toto tried to read over her shoulder, and she shrugged him away. “What is it?” 

“Missing kid. Uncle is looking for his nephew. Nothing’s really adding up right now. What I’m thinking is that he might have scared the kid or have been a danger to the kid. What could he have done to make someone who cared about him run away? His story doesn’t add up.” 

“Then he’s lying. You’ve got good instincts, Banaka. If you think he’s lying, then he’s lying.”

“I’m not questioning my instincts. I am wondering what he’s hiding. He warrants more investigating. He stinks of…something.” 

“What me to look into him?” 

“Nah, come down with me, we’ll go for lunch. The bar owner has a day cook that isn’t this guy.”

“My fries!” Whined Agent Toto and Banaka dumped the cold tubers into the trash can. 

“I’ll get you hot and fresh ones,” she said, “come on.” She stuffed her notes into her jacket and slipped her data file into her jacket. 

“Where are you two going?” Their supervisor, a normally placid woman whose entire life had been dedicated to solving the crime, one way or another, leaned out of her office and glowered at the two agents. 

“Lunch.” Banaka said, “you want anything?” 

“Food, and lots of it. I’ve got a conference to pack for on Imperial Center.” 

“Yes, sir.” Banaka and Toto cleared from the ISB building and made their way down to the lower levels of the city. In the slum neighborhood where Banaka kept a tiny apartment. Toto, blissed out on the after-effects of his drugs, didn’t bother with talking. Banaka was concerned. 

When she entered the bar, it was full of day drunks. The beaslisk was standing at the bar and laughing with a few patrons. 

“Yo!” Banaka shouted, the bar went a bit quiet, and the owner straightened. 

“Wrong time of day to see you, agent.” 

“Wrong time of day to ever see you,” she winked, and a few people chuckled. “Where can I find the soggy breakfast cook of yours?” 

“You need Ben,” there was suspicion in his voice, a lot of it. More than was warranted for a first time offender. “Why?”

“Questions,” she answered easily and nodded to Agent Toto, who was steadily eating every nut on the bar. “He’s got a few orders for you.” 

“Alright, he’s upstairs, Might be sleeping, just kick him awake.” 

“Got it.” She grinned, gave a sloppy salute and found the back stairs to the upstairs apartment. 

It was messy and obviously meant for one person, the owner. There were traces of human living through. Some human pants and shirts on the floor, a few human-sized bits of silverware. Banaka looked around the kitchen and living room. 

Ben was asleep on the fold-out couch. His hair was mused, and he looked sick. He didn’t stir as Banaka stepped into the living room and looked around. 

Odd. 

It was the perfect time to snoop. She did the usual canvas of the place, looking in cabinets and dark corners. Finally, after finding a lot of evidence that the owner was running an illegal weapons ring, she found what she was really looking for. The wooden box was under the couch/bed. Instead of being stuffed full of illegal or disgusting porn; there were a few things she didn’t recognize.

Well, she did recognize the lightsaber. It was a heavy duty one, not like the delicate things she’d seen in a museum once. It was a bit of a shock and terrifying to find herself suddenly holding a lightsaber. She stared at it, memorizing the details of dents and scratches so she could draw a picture of it later. Banaka did the same with the second lightsaber she found. It wasn’t a heavy or as thick but, it was obviously well-worn. 

She glanced at Ben, snoring just ten inches away.

He didn’t look like a Jedi. He looked like a sad, idiot, drunk; she’d had to pool back into his own shop because he’d gotten too drunk to move. 

 

There was a book in script she couldn’t recognize with a symbol she did. It was a simple one, a lightsaber surrounded with the star white wings that flared out at the sides. 

The Jedi Order. 

Shit. She set the book down and rifled through the rest of the stuff. A few holos she didn’t dare activate, a length of hair covered in beads, and a pair of dusty goggles. Banaka stuck it back into the box and then shoved it back into place. 

“Hey!” She stood and kicked at the bed. Ben jolted awake, looking around with wide eyes and groaning in exaggerated agony. “Up!” 

“What are you doing here?” He demanded. Banaka watched him yank his blanket up to cover his chest. “Why are you in my room?” 

“Look, idiot. I have a few questions about the kid.”

“I’ve already answered your questions,” he grumbled and then he seemed to deflate when he looked around to find no drink within reaching distance. Hell, she wasn’t sure there was a drink in the apartment. “I have more. Did you file a missing child report?”

“No, I didn’t.” He rubbed at bleary eyes.

“Why not?” 

“Who files a missing child report? That’s a waste of time.” 

“No,” Banaka didn’t have anything to say in defense of the Empire. It was vile, evil, and horrible, but that didn’t mean that there weren’t officers in planetary law enforcement that wouldn’t look for missing children. That didn’t mean that there would be people who would help him. “Did you check in with your family?” 

“What family?” 

“The family.” 

“Owen and Beru?” 

“The who?” 

“The Larses,” she shifted and saved the names for later. 

“Did you check to make sure that he couldn’t have gone back to them?” 

“I wouldn't …he couldn’t go back. There was a fight, a big one.” Ben laid back on his blankets, “his uncle and aunt, me. We were fighting about the dangers. Too many of them for Luke to stay. He…wasn’t a part of it, but he did overhear. I took him and left.” 

“Were they his guardians?” 

“Who?”

“The other aunt and uncle?” 

 

“Yeah.”

“Were they his legal guardians?”

“Yes. I didn’t even live with them. I lived out in the wastes.” So Ben had kidnapped Luke from his aunt and uncle, his true guardians. “There were raids and attacks and insurgents and all sort of chaos, plus, the Empire was turning their attention toward us. I didn’t think it was safe anymore.” 

“How did Luke react?” 

“He was…confused. Happy to be away from the desert but his real problem was missing the others. I couldn’t get him to stop…crying. Asking for them, wanting to go back. He was scared.” Banaka looked closer at Ben and finally noticed three white patches on his arms and neck. Ones designed to draw intoxicants toward them. He must have been trying to go sober. Those things made everyone loopy and weak. No wonder he hadn’t bothered to stand up. He probably thought he was going to vomit his stomach out.

“He wanted to go home.”

“Home? Why didn’t you take him back?” 

“Too dangerous, we had a year together.” Ben’s eyes slipped just, “I was teaching him. He knew the basics but his emotions…he couldn’t get them handled. His aunt and uncle made him weak. Then, he couldn’t remember them…that was my fault.” Banaka stared at him and felt sick. 

“Right,” she nodded to the door, “thanks. I need to go now. Bye.” She waved the bleary man goodbye and stomped down the stairs. 

There was no way she could bring that kid back to him. It would be irresponsible and reckless. He was a drunk, a dangerous one. He’d taken the boy from his home before. The Jedi artifacts, the idea of training, what was that even? What did it mean?

“Toto!” She shouted, the man jolted from his daze and looked around. Two plastic bags were stuck on the counter in front of him. “We’re going!” 

“Thanks, man,” Toto told Dex, and he took the bags and followed her onto the street. “What’s wrong?” 

“I’m going to be sick and/or kill that man.” She said, stomping away.

“Why?” 

“Something is off about him, seriously off. The story he just told me contradicts everything from before. Something is wrong. I need to go to Jedha.” 

“Jedha?” Toto followed behind, curious. “What’s on Jedha?” 

“Answers, maybe. It’s the only place I can think of that might give me some answers.” She frowned. “Get back to the office, tell the boss I’m headed out on a mission. She’ll understand.”

“You know, if you get caught doing this much pro-bono work, you’ll get arrested.” 

“You going to arrest me?” 

“No, but someone might.” 

“Thanks, keep your mouth shut,” she dug her food out of the plastic bags and took off for her apartment, intent on leaving as quickly as possible. 

#$#$#

“Will you take me to school?” Dhara asked.

“What?” Vader, halfway through pinning up the last hem, turned to look at his teenager ward.

“School, I start today as Teckla Offes.” 

“Yes.”

“Would you take me?” She shuffled nervously, “please.”

“I…very well.” Vader led her to the speeder, an opulent one that was more speed than sense, and they began to fly. 

“I’m…I’m going to a new school, and I’m not Dhara anymore. I’m Teckla Offes. Gentleman, what if something goes wrong?” 

“You will handle this fine, child.” He pulled the speeder into the drop off point and watched the girl fuss over her decision. She moved toward the door, and the turned around hugged him fiercely.

“I know you don’t have to let me do this and I know that it's not easy to let me but I really appreciate everything you’ve done. I know I didn’t thank you for saving me from the the…bad guy.” 

“Uh.” He was too surprised to move, and she was out the door before he got the chance. She mixed into the crowd of students, and he took off when another person honked at him 

Over the rest of the day, he finished the last garment, set the others into their respective bags. 

#$#$

Cassian had to appreciate the chaos of a fashion show. People, models, journalist,s make-up artists, directors, wranglers, light and special effects technicians all ran around at once trying to get a few million things ready. It was so easy to get through the mess to find his target. 

Gentleman was an enormous, calm, and beautiful stone in the middle of a raging river. None of his words were rushed or harried; he dispatched orders with an ease that spoke of experience. Even surrounded by some of the most beautiful models in the galaxy, humans, and twi’lkes, he was somehow more beautiful than all of them. The deep red and tan robes, highlighted by so many different strings and lines of jewelry, including the net of pale white opals that rested over his head and shoulders. 

Cassian couldn’t think of a species with a head shaped so smoothly or domed; he figured that Gentleman was wearing a mask or helmet. 

He inched closer to the being and nearly cursed profusely as the gauze-covered eyes ( he wasn’t sure if it covered goggles or not) turned to him. 

“Shit.” He swore. Gentleman lifted a hand and pointed directly as Cassian. 

“Unfinished model!” The designer exclaimed, “get him prepped! He hits the runway in less than twenty!” Cassian swore viciously as he was set upon by a dozen women and men. He didn’t have time to run or flee before he was pushed behind a curtain and they began to help him into new clothes. 

“I think you must be confused!” He said, “I’m just a tech.” 

“Techs have ID badges.” Said a woman is holding a garment bag, “first-time walk jitters is no reason. Hold still.” 

“But!” He couldn’t have his face plastered over the holo-net. His status as a spy would be ruined for eternity. 

“What is the holdup?” Gentleman leaned behind the curtain, presumably glowering at them. 

“He won’t get changed.” The woman said, and the others all glared at Cassian. He was holding a jacket in front of his bare torso, glowering. 

“You,” Gentleman pointed at him, and Cassian felt chills work down his spine, “change immediately.” 

“I’m not a model.” 

“Of course, what other reason could a person as handsome as you being backstage a fashion show?” The spy blushed, “with no other indicators that you belong here? No ID, no tags, no apparent uses. If you do insist on being obnoxious, I will personally escort you to Director Isard, head of the ISB, who is sitting in the audience right now.” 

“Right,” Cassian swallowed, “lots of makeup?” Isard might have a file on him; he would be broadcast over the whole damn core. 

“Make him camera ready,” Gentleman ordered, and Cassina glowered at the man’s broad back. He was dressed a few minutes later, and the crew was slathering and putting makeup on him. He ended up with his short black curls pinned up and set with a simple circlet of gold. The rest of his suit, tailored and a deep black with ivory highlights, was so different from anything he’d seen, he spent a good chunk of time staring into the mirror. 

“Alright, you just walk confident and turn and walk back, here.” The woman demonstrated the walk; he felt stupid. 

“That’s not a way to walk!” 

“We need to show off the suit,” she smacked his shoulder, “you don’t want to be the only model who looks out of place, do you?” 

“No!” He yelped, and she gestured him onto the pretend catwalk. 

“Practice!” 

“NOW!” She pointed, and Cassian rolled his eyes. After ten minutes of grueling practice and getting yelled out, he was finally shoved into the hallway where the other models were being lined up. Cassian felt his entire body go numb, his mouth went dry, and his face went white. If it weren’t for his years as a spy, he could have frozen up completely as models began to walk out, directed by the increasing intense woman. 

The volume shuttered and seemed to die as something with a mechanical whine buzzed in his ears. 

Ear protectors. Fantastic. 

Cassian walked past the divide and onto the catwalk with as much confidence as he could muster.

The only thing he could think of as he faced the enormous crowd and the hundred cameras, was that Mothma was going to kill him. 

#$#$#

“Get off of my holo!” Ezra planted his hands on his hips and glowered at Aphra. She was lounging at his desk and working furiously. 

“You have the best holo-net connection on the planet,” she said, ignoring his order, “I need to do research.” 

“On what?” He stomped over, Gohan stuck her head into the room. 

“What’s wrong?” 

“Aphra’s on my holo, and I need it to do my paperwork! Get off, Aphra.”

“Pipe down kid, I’m working.” 

“On what?” Gohan followed Ezra into the room, “you have a perfectly nice holo in your office.” 

“I’m…looking up how to teach.” Aphra didn’t dare turn around to look at her partners. 

“What?” 

“I didn’t think that I need to actually teach! Or like! Do stuff and have the stuff to show it all off. I got up in front of my students today and…choked! I had nothing! I don’t know anything about teaching!” 

“You,” Gohan’s voice turned chilly, “had two weeks to look up what to do and how to do it. What did you spend two weeks doing?” 

“I was working on something else.” 

“Aphra,” she turned and, despite the fact that Gohan was a few years younger, her fury was terrifying. “Get out.” 

She obeyed, closing down her information and sending it to her profile before tucking tail and skittering from his office. 

“Stars,” Ezra climbed onto the newly abandoned seat, “she’s so smart but so dumb sometimes. “

“Yes,” Gohan stared at him and she leaned against the holo as he logged on. “What do you think about tutoring?” 

“What?” 

“Ezra, you’re good at hiding it, but I know that your schooling is pretty lacking. You can read and write and basic sums but, you need more.”

“I don’t….why?” 

“Because, I don’t want to use you as a puppet forever,” she grinned, and he shrank against his chair. “I want you to have the…abilities and skills to rule for real. Mostly, I want to be able to leave the planet on assignment.” 

“Oh,” Ezra sat back down, “who would teach me?” 

“A few different people, but Beru Lars is willing to teach you.” 

“My security?” He looked over to the window where several guards patrolled outside. 

“She’s experienced, when we get to the more complicated stuff, then we get someone else. Until then, what do you think.” 

“On top of my work as a King?” 

“You’re hardly doing anything right now. I’m doing most of the work as it is, so yes, you should take some lessons.” 

“Fine.” Ezra snapped, and he glowered as Gohan smiled, “stop being happy!” 

“No. Also, I need to watch a fashion show, so I need you to move.” 

“WHAT?” 

#$#$#

“Ah, you’re here.” Gentleman, seemingly unaffected by Cassian’s glower, didn’t bother turning away from the length of cloth he seemed to be embroidering. “Rather later than I expected, but I supposed you had to make a report to your rebel command.”

“How dare you,” Cassian seethed, his blaster didn’t waver even as his voice shook with fury, “you knew!” 

“I have known, Cassian Andor since you bought your first mimosa at the bar. Since you bought a few other spies under the guise as dates. Do not be mistaken, rebel, I am aware of every single one of your visits. Put down your blaster before you embarrass yourself further.” 

“No, turn around.” Gentleman sighed and did so, setting his embroidery down and staring at him. “Why did you do that?” 

“You were there, and I was down a model!” 

“You are an animal.” 

“You are not the first to say this.” 

“I walked down a catwalk in front of my enemies and hundreds of cameras! You’ve blown my identity!” 

“Have I?” 

“YES!” 

“No,” Gentleman produced a small projector, and the picture hovered above it. It was Cassian, his face clear and obvious, a beautifully taken shot. He blushed reflexively. “This is the only decent picture of you. You might recall your circlet?” 

“What about it?” Another picture joined the first, in this one, his face was blurred. 

“This is an example of every single other picture taken of you, this afternoon. Even the cameras failed to properly focus on your face. The circlet was a disruptor. Now, I possess the only decent picture of this suit and model. According to my recent information, news stations, fashion critics, and holo-zines are bidding in the high thousands for a proper picture to complete the collection spread. Not only would I expose you to every single one of your enemies…I would make a small fortune doing it.” 

Cassian glowered and slowly set his blaster back in its holster. “What do you want?” 

“Information.”

“I will not betray the rebellion,” Cassian told him automatically.

“I’m not asking you to.” Gentleman tucked the projector away, “I only want to know what they know. Whatever information you may have for them, also comes to me. As an added incentive, I will pay you.”

“Bribes?”

“Consider this…a carrot and stick approach.” The fashion designer said smugly. Cassian wondered who it was beneath those folds of fabric. He was tempted to jump the man and start yanking at his clothes if only to satisfy his own curiosity. 

“You just insulted the emperor,” Cassian pointed out, “you are a crime boss, and you’re pretty open about being a crime boss. You might not be around long enough to get anything useful from me.” 

“I did insult the emperor, you will be useful to me, or you will be exposed or dead.” Gentleman didn’t seem too concerned that he’d done the equivalent of turning his back on the emperor, dropping his pants, and mooning the man. 

“Fine.” Cassian thought helplessly of the picture, “I want a bonus every six months.” 

“Done.” Gentleman stared at him steadily, and Cassian floundered. “You may inform Mothma that I have anti-Imperial leanings and that an alliance with the rebels may be possible in the future.” 

“I think she knows you have anti-Imperial leanings.” Cassian snorted, “but fine.”

“You may go.” Gentleman waved to the door, and Cassian shot him an ugly glare as he stomped out.

“I don’t know,” Tove pushed a bookshelf open and stepped out of the hidey hole, “how people think that you’re such a pain? Or how they get the impression that you’re such an ass? Honestly, I don’t know.” 

“What is it?” 

“You’re making headlines.” Tove told him, “listen to this. Vato Studios, which recently made headlines for the production of Lady Vader’s gala outfit, has debuted its first collection in Corellian Fashion Week, for the first time in ten years, the runway saw more than just humans. Designer Gentleman displayed five separate partial collections, see page 122B through 134B, for five separate species.” Tove stared at him, “it goes on to explain that you thumbed your nose at the Empire because you hired models to walk on a runway in a fashion show that a lot of powerful people attended. A lot of powerful xenophobic people, and that’s just this article.”

“Oh no, force forbid they see beautiful aliens.”

“I’m just saying. You got what you wanted. You’re now branded as pro-alien and maybe anti-imp.” Vader nodded slowly, “there’s more.” 

“You may compile a report for me to read tomorrow evening. I must return to Dhara and ensure she has not accidentally starved herself.”

“Teenagers,” Tove agreed, without knowing what she was agreeing with. “I’ll send you the report tomorrow.” A huge yawn interrupted her words. “But I’m going to bed; this has been a lot of work. Also, good job on tricking that rebel agent into walking down a runway. Funniest thing I’ve seen in years.” 

“It would have been more amusing if he hadn’t done such a good job,” Vader said, “my assistant was rabid, send her a bonus.” 

“Aye.” Tove yawned again, and Vader contemplated the work he’d manage to accomplish. Even if Queen Apindala was expanding their operations, he hoped to join them with his work as Gentleman.


	30. Jifus' Secret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The doctor has a few secrets and insecurities up her sleeve. 
> 
> Luke does too.

“So,” the doctor smiled at Luke, he seemed easy going enough, “how are you doing today?”

“Okay,” Luke shifted and glanced over to the window where the cityscape buzzed with lights and noise. “How are you?”

“I spilled caf on my favorite tie,” the doctor looked down and held up his tie for Luke’s inspection, “very distressing. I liked it a lot.”

“Oh,” Luke kicked his heels and sighed, “how long does this have to be?” 

“We have 45 minutes left in this appointment,” Dr. Hayden leaned back in his chair. Luke frowned and sighed. “When I spoke with your mother she expressed concern for your nightmares.”

“Don’t forget amnesia,” Luke muttered, and the man nodded, “I don’t remember anything from before three years ago.” 

“Amnesia and nightmares and?” 

“PTSD mom says. She thinks the nightmares are linked to my earliest memories and even the ones I don’t remember. I mean, she’s probably right, she’s got it also, same with Father.”

“Hmm,” the man wrote something down, and Luke sighed. 

“I'm honest; I didn’t want to come today. I thought about taking public transport home instead of coming to the appointment.” 

“Well, I’m glad you did come,” there was an insufferable amount of understanding and patience in Dr. Hayden’s face, and Luke wanted to kick him. “Where would you like to start?”

#$#$#$

“I don’t know if a mission might be the smartest thing for you right now.” 

“If I don’t get a chance to do something that isn’t failing at devising a cure, I’m going to scream.” Jifus leaned over the desk, “I need a mission. Who needs me?” 

“Everyone needs a good doctor,” Dr. PuD rubbed his head, “Jifus, you have a son now. You’re married! What if he disapproves.”

“First, this isn’t my first mission. I don’t make rookie mistakes. Second, my husband doesn’t control me. Luke won’t miss me too much. Two weeks, max.” 

“Alright, alright, if you want to go charging into the chaos that’s fine. We’re still fielding calls about that display you put on after the gala.” 

“Don’t let them in on this. Mobile Doctors aren’t going to be idiots. We have too many secrets to protect.” 

“Where do you want to go anyway?” 

“On the outer rim,” Dr. Jifus settled back into her chair and sighed, “I need some space to think. My fellowship is working overtime every day, and we’re still no closer to finding the cure. Hell, we can’t even pinpoint the responsible agents. Every time we try to reproduce the effects of other things it just falls through.” 

“You think a war zone is going to help you think?”

“I don’t know.” She glanced back, “what have you got for me?” The man who had been typing quickly produced an image on his holo deck. 

“A recent bit of Jedha, a burgeoning war zone. Not very safe and with a lot of Imperials there who are perfectly trigger happy.” 

“No, anything I might do there would be…reckless given that I’m pretty popular now. Somewhere with less Imp presence.” 

“Um, I’ve got a planetary crisis on Gaastra. A few quakes that caused some trouble.” 

“That’s good; I can do natural disasters.” 

“Let me draw up the paperwork, and we can send you out this time tomorrow.” Dr. PuD shook his head as Jifus grinned and stood up. 

“Thanks, doc.”

“No problem, just don’t let your husband try to kill me.” 

“Eh, he won’t. He’ll be fine.” Jifus stood and left. 

#$#$#

When Luke returned to the residence, he was pretty surprised to see that his parents had already returned. Vader, from his long mission to the mid -rim, and Jifus from her fellowship. He walked into the living room and dropped his backpack to the floor. 

“Hey, Niles,” he wandered into the kitchen, “where’s mom?” 

“Oh, your mother is prepping for a mission.” Niles told him, and he produced a bright yellow box, “after school snack?”

“Nice,” Luke took the proffered box, “do you know where my father is?” 

“I am not sure. I do know he only returned a few hours ago.” 

“Thanks!” Luke waved and left, on the hunt for his mother. He did find her in her room. A pack was sitting on her bed, opened. A dozen barely identifiable tools were scattered around the blanket. “What’s this?” 

“Work,” she emerged from the closet with her hair going every which way, “I’m off on a Mobile Doctors mission tomorrow evening. Natural disasters, they need some help, so they asked me to go.” 

“Oh,” Luke sat on the side of the bed as Jifus began to pack the rest of the tools, “how long are you going to be gone?”

“Five days at the least, two weeks at the most.” She flashed him a grin, “don’t worry. This isn’t anything I haven’t done before. Your father will be on planet the whole time.”

“Okay,” He opened the box and stopped when his mother heaved a sigh. 

“Please don’t eat things that make crumbs on my bed.” 

“You do.” He pointed out, and she looked away to stifle a grin, “come on! You’re going to gone! You don’t want a crumb colony building itself on your bed?” 

“No, Luke, get off my bed.” 

“Alright,” he heaved his own dramatic sigh and hopped down and stole on her chair so he could eat his snack. 

“How was your appointment? Did you like Dr. Hayden?”

“I guess it was okay; he seemed a little odd though.”

“I’m not surprised. Is there anything you wanted to talk about? Anything come up?”

“He just wants to talk right now. Get to know me and stuff. I don’t…think its bad. It’s just odd.” 

“Do you think you trust him?” 

“Yeah,” Luke wasn’t used to trusting adults, but he had a good sense of people. “I can, but I don’t want to.” 

“That’s a bad thing?” 

Luke grumbled to himself, “this would be way easier if you were just sympathetic to me.” 

“I am sympathetic. If I weren't, I wouldn’t have sent you to him.” Luke stared at his mother and shrugged; he wasn’t sure what else to say. 

#$#$#$

“Could you stop being so disgusting!” Boba Fett stared at the mess that Doora had made of his kitchen and then at the pre-teen. She was chewing with her mouth open and reading a datapad propped up against a jug of blue milk that should have been set back into the cooler. 

“What’s wrong?” She demanded some of her food fell from her mouth. Boba closed his eyes and counted to ten. 

“How? How are you a functioning human? This is disgusting!” 

“I’m eating.” 

“You’re eating with your mouth open, and you’re leaving the milk out. I don’t want it to spoil, put it back.” 

“Back where?” 

“In the cooler,” he glowered when Doora rolled her eyes. “Move it.” 

“Okay, Mr. Delicate Man. I’ll do it.” She scrapped her chair back and grabbed the jug. As she did so, her glass tipped over and spilled across the table and onto the floor. “Oops.”

“Kid.” Boba ran a hand over his face. How had his father tolerated this? He was pretty sure he hadn’t made so many messes when he was eleven. “Why?” 

“What?” She demanded.

“You have a lot of skills as a hunter and a hitter, kid, but you’ve got none as a functioning human. Your room is a mess, when was the last time you got clean?” He covered his nose, only a little dramatic. “Alright, we’re going somewhere with a karking hot spring. You need a bath, and you’re not going to clog up my pipes by being disgusting.” 

“I’m not disgusting!” Doora shouted, “I’m just a little messy, that’s all. It’s not the end of the galaxy.” 

“We’re still finding somewhere to get you clean. This is nasty.” Boba stomped up to the cockpit of his ship and began to activate the engines. After a few weeks of living in the same little meadow with no fights and no excitement, he wasn’t sad to see it go. His young guest/ apprentice was proving to be more and messier. It wasn’t hard to figure out why, Doora was a young kid, and didn’t seem to have any parents. Or anyone to tell her that baths were 100% necessary. 

Boba had at least had Jango. 

“So where are we going?” 

“There’s a town not too far from here,” he said, “they’ve got a public bathhouse and a place where we can get your clothes washed. You’re also going to be cleaning your room.” 

“What does cleaning my room have to do with being a bounty hunter?” He grimaced as she continued to eat cereal next to delicate equipment. 

“You keep your equipment clean, right?” 

“Um, yeah. Baster and sniper rifles don’t work when they’re jammed and gross.” 

“Your tools aren’t just the ones that shoot blaster bolts. Your body is a tool; it works best when it’s clean and healthy. Haven't you even changed your socks, have you? “

“No. Socks are socks; they don’t need changing.” 

“They do when they can give you a fungus.”

“That’s bad right?” 

“Yeah, it makes them smell worse and some can damage your muscles.” 

“Oh.” Doora slurped down the last of her milk and set the bowl and spoon on the floor. 

“Do you even know what your period is?” 

“What’s a period? One of the others used to talk about them, but I don’t know what it is.” 

Boba swore under his breath and then shook his head. “Alright, alright. I’m dropping you off at the bathhouse.” 

“Where are you going?”

“To get some laundry done and some pamphlets from a doctors office.” It was almost vindicating to see Doora’s sour, unhappy expression when he left her in the care of a few attendants at the public bathhouse. Then he loaded his speeder with overflowing laundry baskets and dropped them off at the drycleaners with a promise of a triple tip if they got them done in four hours. Once that was done, he returned to Slave 1 and cleaned it. Taking great pleasure in cleaning every room except hers. Undeterred with the frantic messages she was sending him; Boba stopped by a doctors office to pick up the previously threatened pamphlets as well as some campy recorded info videos. 

When he did return to the bathhouse, Doora looked miserable and sulky. It surprised him some. He’d seen her sit motionless in her sniper den for a day as she waited for his hunting droids to make a mistake. She hadn’t complained then, and she hadn’t complained when she’d fallen into a ruffers den and gotten scratched to hell and back by one of the angry babies. When he walked into the waiting room, her face was scrunched up in a glower, and she crossed her arms. 

“You’re late,” she snapped, and he looked at the attendants. They were stifling laughter and grinning widely. 

“Imagine that. You ready to go?” 

“I was ready to go a few hours ago.” She stood and stomped over to the door, “you coming?” 

“In a minute,” he turned to survey the wall of bathing materials. A lot of bath salts, some soaps and such, hair care, brushes, and even some rubber bath toys (intended for children). “Hmm.” Doora groaned and leaned against the wall as he examined the different products. He ended up buying more than he probably should have but her reactions were hilarious every time he put something new on the counter. 

“That was awful,” Doora grumbled as they navigated through town to his ship. 

“You didn’t like it?” Boba glanced out of the corner of his eye. Doora looked cleaner, and she definitely smells nicer. Her hair bounced around her head; he noticed how her nails were trimmed and buffed. She squirmed in her seat.

“It wasn’t so bad,” Doora admitted, “that’s just way more people than I’m used to. They were all paying attention to me and being weird. All that are laughing and giggling. Oh, and someone wanted your comm unit number.” 

“Why?” Boba Fett’s face was one of a thousand, but he was still wary every time he went out without his mask. 

“They thought you were cute or something. I don’t know. Don’t ask me. Adults are dumb.” 

“Kid,” Boba rubbed his face, “you don't have a lot of socialization.” 

“What’s does that mean?” 

“You haven’t been around a lot of different people of spoke different languages and thought different things.”

“…I think a little, at least some.”

“That’s a start. We’re going to go to the bounty hunters guild office on Nar Shadda and finding a job.” 

“Finally,” she slumped in her seat and stifled a yawn, “this is taking forever. I thought to be your student was going to be a lot cooler.”

“You watch too many films.” 

“You’re an old fart,” Doora sniped, but she seemed to too tired to complain much. “I hate spending time with a lot of people. It always makes me tired.” 

“Apologies,” Fett lied, “do you want to find someone to kill?” 

“Can it make it someone who works for the Hutts? I love killing those guys. Slavers are so fun to trap.” 

“Trap?” 

“Yeah, you know. You make an fancy trap and some disguise and then they walk right into it. So dumb.” 

“Like your trip on Mandalore?” 

“Hell yeah, hilarious. You saw that, don’t you think it was awesome.” 

“You’ve got style,” Boba sighed, “you’ve sure got style.” 

#$#$# 

“During the doctors absence what will you do?” Emperor Palpatine looked down on Vader, “fuss and felt at home like some silly housewife?” His apprentice didn’t move.

“There are matters I have been neglecting.” Vader admitted slowly, “matter of the Navy and the loss of the Grand Inquisitor had put a great many things in disarray.” 

“Perhaps,” Palpatine agreed, he continued to watch his apprentice, “your mission into the darkness has rejuvenated you, Lord Vader. I can feel your hatred and strength.” 

“I have only done to please you, my master.” 

“Hmmm, I have met your son, Lord Vader. I found him to be insolent and disrespectful. You will punish him severely.”

“Master?” Vader looked at him with a confused tilt of his head. 

“He spoke with no respect. He has no proper fear of authority.” Vader still waited in silence, and the Emperor snorted in disgust. “Punish him.” 

“As you say, my master.” Palpatine seemed annoyed, but he was quiet for a while. When he waved his hand to dismiss him, Vader practically ran from the palace. Jifus would be leaving on her trip soon, headed for an undisclosed planet for a mission of indeterminate length. It would be wisest if he was at the residence when she left.

When he rushed into the hanger, while pretending not to rush, Jifus was waiting next to her favorite speeder. Luke looked despondent, and he sat on her duffle bag. 

“You almost missed me,” Jifus told him as he slowed to a march. “I thought you might not make it.” 

“Apologies, wife,” he came to a halt several feet from her, unsure. She looked different now. He hadn’t seen her in three weeks. The ready-wear scrubs, designed for long-term missions into the middle of nowhere looked more militaristic than he remembered. There were pockets of pockets, and her Mobile doctor's symbol was stitched into the right shoulder fabric. The olive green duffle bag looked old and well-used. Luke was fiddling with a metal cap with a wide-brim that Vader dimly recognized as a helmet that the civilian medics had used during the clone wars. It ought to have been in a museum. “Are you prepared for your trip?” 

“Packed and ready to go.” She nodded slowly, “Luke.” She nudged him with her foot. 

“Do you have to go?”

“Yes,” Jifus paused, “I do.” 

“What about the princess?” Vader recognized the confusion and annoyance in her eyes. It was probable that she was using this trip as an excuse to give herself some distance from a seemingly unsolvable problem. Jifus didn’t answer, and Luke scowled. “Are you going to send letters?”

“It’s a natural disaster Luke; I can’t send letters every day.” Their son drooped visibly.

“You’ll be careful,” Luke asked, and Vader wondered why his son was suddenly reacting so strangely.

“Of course,” Jifus held her hand out of her helmet and Luke passed it over. “You’ll be fine while I’m gone. Your father will be here.” 

“I will,” Vader agreed, “Son, I must speak to your mother in confidence.” The blond glared at them and left the hanger. 

“He had his first meeting with his therapist today. He might be feeling a little…raw. Be gentle with him.” 

“He has been irritable all day?” 

“Pretty much, he’s handling it way better than I did my first meeting.”Jifus mused, “you realize this is my first time leaving him for an extended period of time?”

“Luke is resilient,” Vader told her, “I trust you will attempt to communicate.” 

“I will send my holos during my call times.” His wife promised, and Vader almost shuffled his feet. “What?” 

“I spoke with the Emperor.” 

“Ew.” 

“He has commanded me to punish Luke for his insolence.” 

“Ah, do you know the specifics?” 

“I do not.” Jifus chuckled before launching into an explanation of the conversation Luke had related when the Emperor had ordered the inquisitor to pull their son from school. When she was finished, Vader felt his heart drop through his chest cavity and to his boots. Beneath his mask, he was sure he was bright red. “I see.” 

“His boyfriend, can you believe it? He looks the evilest men in the galaxy in the face and asks if they are dating?” 

“How did you deal with it?” 

“I told him to wait until you got back. I haven’t been able to think about punishing him without laughing. It was too funny for me.” Vader privately agreed. “What will you do?” 

“I am unsure.” He pondered the problem and ignored it. Sensing the shift in the air, Jifus cleared her throat. 

“When will you return.” 

“No more than two weeks. Here’s the information packet. Don’t let anyone else see it. I won’t bore you with the details.” She leaned over and hoisted her duffle bag over her shoulder. Now, more than ever, she looked like a soldier heading off to war. Vader felt Palpatine’s analogy would be correct. Was this how she felt when he left, concerned and worried? Did she notice when he was gone? Did she care? 

“Luke is in capable hands, and I will keep any from removing him from school.” Jifus looked at him oddly and nodded before boarding her speeder and leaving him alone.

Vader turned toward the living room to find Luke sulkily tossing couch pillows at the wall. The blond didn’t turn around, and Vader waited until he felt Luke was ready to listen. 

“I do not think the pillows were guilty of any serious crime.” Luke snorted. “Something concerns you, son.” 

“Really?” The boy asked sarcastically, “what gave it away?” 

Vader considered giving the boy a lecture or sending him to his room; he settled for something else. “If you are still interested in piloting, my shuttle is ready.” 

“Piloting?” Luke finally turned around, “you mean you’ll give me another lesson?” 

“Yes.”

“Oh.” The blond nodded slowly, “okay.” They returned to the hanger. The lesson progressed slowly, but Luke sighed eventually. “I think I just need to go get some sleep.” 

“What disturbs you, Luke?” The boy shrugged and didn’t answer. There was a depressed slant to his shoulders, and his eyes looked misty. 

“I don’t want to talk about it.” He was gone from the ship before Vader could stop him. The Sith watched him leave and felt something unpleasent pull at his heart. Instead of brooding, he headed to his office.

#$#$

“Qui-Gon?” Luke shifted under the water a bit and knocked some suds and water to the floor. “Qui?” 

“Luke?” Qui-Gon Jinn appeared a second later and stared at the blond. Luke was submerged in the deep bathtub. It was stacked with bubbles and suds, the only part of Luke he could see was the narrow shoulders and his head. What concerned the dead Jedi most, were the tears tracking down his face. “Are you alright?” 

“No.” 

“You’ve never called me before.”

“Qui…I think somethings wrong.” Luke rubbed at his face, “I don’t know why but I’m scared. Something’s wrong, and I don’t know what it is.” The look on Qui-Gon’s face was not comforting. 

“All is as the force wills it, Luke.” 

“The force,” Luke snorted, “you sound like my father.” The ghostly man smiled a little. “What the heck is the force anyway? It makes no sense.”

“One day at a time,” Qui-Gon cautioned. “You cannot charge into the future unaware of the past.” 

“I DON’T KNOW MY PAST!” Luke shouted suddenly, water and suds sloshed around the tub as he twisted around angrily, he didn’t stand but glared at the ghost. “I don’t know anything about who I was and what I did. I didn’t even think about it. I didn’t care until recently. Now it’s all I can think about! Who am I?” 

“You are Luke.” Qui-Gon sounded sad, almost heartbroken as Luke glowered at him furiously. 

“I don’t even know if that is my real name.” He said bitterly after a moment of silence. “That’s all a man was yelling the first time I woke up. I ran away from him because I was scared and that’s what he was yelling. How do I even know that’s my name?” 

Qui-Gon hesitated and sat down on the edge of the tub. His looked at the plain gray ceiling and then down at the boy, “did it ever feel wrong or misplaced?” 

“What? “

Luke moved a bit, cupping some soap suds between his hands and refusing to look up. 

“Your name. When people talked to you or addressed you, did it feel wrong? “

“Only when I was undercover or hiding,” Luke admitted.

“Luke is your name. It was the name you were given as an infant, and you shouldn’t be afraid of it.” 

“Then why doesn’t it feel totally right? What is my last name?” Luke looked up, “why am I asking you?” He muttered and sank further into the suds until the top of his hair was the only thing showing. “What does it matter?” 

#$#$

#%$%$%$

The patient on the cot beside her was a young twi’lek girl. Her lekku already stamped with the insignia of an off-planet brothel. She was asleep, recovering from her harrowing surgery. 

Beside her, under an identical scratchy blanket was her mother. 

On the other side of the mother was a wookie, groaning and restless in his sleep. 

Five rows of patients stretched out in the leaning building before Jifus, all of them hooked up to identical machines and breathing apparatus’.

“That was some excellent work.” 

Jifus tilted her head to the right, not taking her eyes off the youngest patient in the room. 

“I’m not joking. This has got to be a record.” 

“It’s not,” Dr. Piett turned, tucking her hands into her pocket. “Why are you still up, Nunny?” 

“Same as you.” The other human doctor crossed his arms and nodded to the rows of patients. “Tired enough that I can’t sleep. Where’s your scanner?”

Jifus blinked slowly and pulled out her scanner from her bag. “Here, still undiscovered. How are your patients?” 

“Alive right now, thanks for asking.” 

“Of course they are.” Jifus yawned, not bothering to cover her mouth.

“No one even blew up under the scalpel.” 

“If any of those transmitters would have blown up they would have taken your hands with them. Since your not in here whining about how you’ll never pleasure yourself again,” Jifus shrugged, “I’m assuming you’re okay.”

“Speaking of pleasuring ourselves,” Nunny winked and tilted his head a bit, “how’s your husband treating you?”

“We’re not talking about that here,” Jifus replied, unfolding her arms to lead her guest down the rows of ex-slaves until they were at the end of the room. Nunny followed her until they reached a sturdy tent of green fabric. 

“I can’t believe you kept this old relic.” Nunny ran his hands over the fabric of the tent as he ducked under the flap. “This is older than your son.” 

“It is from the clone wars, but it has served me well ever since.” Jifus dropped onto her cot and began to manipulate the stove until the small kettle began to wobble from the heat. “If it works then don’t worry.” 

“You can literally afford a ship that will serve as your home,” Nunny said, taking a collapsible chair that creaked under his weight. “Why do you still use this old tent?” Jifus didn’t reply. “At least you got a better stove.” 

“He insisted on a few upgrades.” Jifus didn’t mention that she and Vader had argued extensively over the upgrades. She, not wanting to get rid of her old tools, and Vader insisting on getting them replaced with something modern. They’d compromised on a few things. Like a heater, she’d set in the post-op building. A sleeping bag that could withstand sub-zero temperatures which were currently housing one of her most fragile patients. 

“Tea?” Nunny grinned, “nice. No booze?” Jifus glowered at the young man and he ducked his head. “I forgot.” 

“Don’t forget next time.” Even though it wasn’t too cold, Jifus shrugged on her worn-out parka and sighed. “God, I’m old.” 

“Not that old.” Nunny grinned, his skin, almost as dark as her husband’s armor, gleamed under the faint light. “You’re still kicking, right?” 

“More or less.” She stared at the other doctor, “you did good work out there, Nunny.” 

“Thanks.” He blushed, “I learned from the best.” 

“Good man,” Dr. Piett grinned enough that Nunny relaxed. 

“I’ll pour the tea.” Nunny said, “don’t want that old dame to break her hip.” Luke would have found that funny, Jifus thought. 

“Right.” She leaned against her pillow and watched her friend set out to make the tea. 

“So, did you run away?” 

“Yep.” 

“Want to talk about it?” Nunny handed over the tea and Jifus set the mug on her stomach and pondered the question. 

“Did I run away from the princess I can’t cure? Haven’t cured?” Did I run away from my husband who is a literal stranger and a threat in my own house that I can’t get rid of? Maybe the fact that even though I know, he’s a threat to all of our work here I might start feeling for him? That stupid bit of sentiment of romance that’s just there and I don’t know what to do with it. Or,” she turned on her side, careful of her mug, “maybe I ran away from the chance of ruining my son? Maybe I’m running away from the political hostage living in my house that is an exact replica of Kit’s dead first wife?” 

Nunny choked on his tea, gaping over the spilled water at her. 

“Well,” the other doctor pursed his lips, “that’s a lot to unpack.” 

“Tell me about it.” Jifus rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling miserably. 

“So…a previous wife?” 

“Yeah.” Jifus considered her apparent bitterness. “I shouldn’t even be angry or bitter. She’s been dead for almost 14 years.” 

“Does he still love her?” 

“I think he’s tortured himself with her memory for so long it’s hardly relevant if he’s in love with her anymore. She’s always been in the background of everything he’s done for so long. I don’t even know if he cares about me. I mean? Why should he? He’s Darth Vader? He’s….a horrible person. He’s killed so many people and hurt so many more. I don’t know if he views me as a sort of extended house guest he occasionally takes out on dates or not. We have a son for god’s sake. I don’t know why but I’m so kriffin’ insecure about our relationship. I can’t even be honest with him about anything. I can’t tell him,” Jifus jabbed a hand at the top of the tent, “that when I go on mobile doctor missions that I go and cut live bombs out of people. Almost constantly at the risk of being blown up by a single mistake because some scum bag thought it would be a good idea to inject live bombs into people!” 

“I can see why you’re hesitant to discuss the truth with him,” Nunny said after a long moment. 

“The only time I thought we were close to telling the truth was when we were dancing at the gala.” Nunny hummed in agreement. Jifus bit her bottom lip. “We weren’t even speaking, but it felt like…we connected. Like something clicked, and then we basically went back to ignoring it.”

“Jifus.”

“I don’t even know if he tolerates me or even likes me. I don’t know. I got married to this man, and I’ve tried to be friends with him but, I feel more comfortable when he’s gone on a mission. I don’t even know how I feel or how he feels.”   
“That sounds rough.”

“Plus Ryoo is there like a constant slap in the face. Ohhh, look here is a carbon copy of a dead woman you were once married to! Isn’t that great!” 

“And you know being angry as Ryoo is unfair.” 

“I know!” Jifus considered the ceiling of her tent, “I shouldn’t have gotten married.”

“Ah,” Nunny nodded slowly, “have you actually had sex with him?”

“Hell no,” Jifus scoffed, “I can’t even be barely emotionally vulnerable. There is no way I could ever be especially vulnerable to that man. I mean even when we talk it just feels superficial and stilted.” 

“You keep coming back to the talking point.” Nunny observed, “that’s bothering you the most, isn’t it?” 

“Yeah.” Jifus sulked a moment, “I wanted something like my parents. Mutual respect and affection, plus a serious meaning behind getting married. I jumped in feet first, and I didn’t even think about the consequences. I just…I don’t kriffn’ know anymore. So yeah, I ran away from my house and all my responsibilities and such. I know it wasn’t smart, but I thought I was going to explode if I sat around much longer.” 

“You’re like the rest of us Mobile Doctors,” Nunny said, “you need a disaster to fix. One you can sink your hands into and work on, and there’s a reason most of us don’t get married. Secrets like this ruin relationships.” 

“I know the statistics,” Jifus grumbled, “Mobile Doctor’s marriages never end well because of the lies and the scheming they have to do. Plus, who wants to marry someone who runs straight into a war zone or disaster area without weapons?” 

“Probably the same person who married a crazy lady who runs into a disaster with a crown on her head.” 

“Sounds about right.” Morosely, Jifus sipped her tea. The silence that followed was comfortable if tense on Jifus’ part. “Nunny, do you think I’m a collaborator?” 

“Collaborator?” Nunny, reading a few patients charts on his datapad, glanced up at his older friend. The woman had been silent for awhile now. “Why?” 

“Think about it; I married Darth Vader. He’s the Supreme Commander of the Imperial Navy. He’s set to inherit the throne if the Emperor doesn’t shoot him like a bad eopie. I married him willingly, and I’m benefiting from all the horrors the Empire is unleashing on the galaxy. So….am I a collaborator?”

“I think…that people would view you as one. The rebellion and such all probably do. If they don’t pity you, then they hate you, but in the other senses, you’re probably not at all. You’re married to one of the scariest men in the galaxy, and you still take missions to do dangerous and illegal work.” Nunny waved at her tent, “you’re here cutting slave transmitters out of people even though if you get caught it’ll be a short trip to the firing squad. You’re not abusing your new authority or power. You’re living there, and you’re taking care of your son. Even if this Ryoo girl bothers you, you haven’t been mean to her, have you?”

“No, she’s attending medical school a few grids away from my house. I’ve been helping tutor her when I’ve got a free minute.” 

“You seem to be doing the right thing.” 

“Thanks, somehow I don’t feel better.” 

“I don’t know how to help you with that,” Nunny shrugged, “hell, I don’t even know where to start.”

“I need to talk to my father or my mother,” Jifus said. “They might have an idea. I have no idea how to handle this relationship.” 

#$#$#

It turned out that raiding Hutt ships was easy to do. Vader, with little to entertain himself, began to compile the evidence and work necessary for the beginning of Hutt destruction. 

Palpatine said nothing as he began with spicers, directly allied with the Hutts, and sent his fleets in to clean out pirate dens. While his mother-in-law didn’t call, she replied to his messages with vengeful glee. With his authority, she began to manuver her anti-pirate fleet outside her own system. Cleaning up and clearing out slave gangs and spicers. 

Vader also sent a note of congratulations when he heard his brother-in-law was promoted. Firmus Piett was now an Admiral of his own right and probably happier than he would have been in the Imperial Navy. Though, he was positive that leaving the Navy had been a point of extreme bitterness for the man. 

There was nothing of interest going on in the senate dome. Ever since the princess’s illness, Bail Organa had become withdrawn and quiet. 

Luke’s schooling hadn’t seen a hitch since the first day. His son reporting that most people were more interested in him as a prince than as a person. 

Vader stood before the enormous window of his senate dome office and wondered when the boy would be arriving. 

“My lord?” His secretary, an older man with a stooped walk and a raspy voice, cleared his throat nervously. 

“Has my son arrived?” 

“Ah, there seems to be an issue, sir.” Vader turned and the man withered under his glower. “A request for your presense has just been sent in. It is to handle an altercation that took place just a few moments ago.” 

“Why does this concern me?” Vader demanded, his secretary wavered nervously. 

“Milord, I believe that young Lord Luke was involved.” Vader blinked rapidly and wondered how Luke could have gotten involved in a fight.

“Where is he?” 

“He is being held by the Senate Dome security on level four. There wasn’t a stated reason why there was an altercation. “

“I will investigate,” Vader promised and swept from his office. Minor officials and soldiers all ducked against the walls. He ignored them all. Luke was summoned to his Senate office for the express purpose of keeping him out of trouble. He could send the boy to the residence but there it was mostly empty, and Luke was prone to trouble and sneaking out when he thought Vader wouldn’t return for a while. 

It was usually true, and none of his agents had been able to track Luke through the Undercity. Keeping Luke more or less confined to his office while Vader was still working was a useful way to keep an eye on Luke. 

There was a small cluster of officers and troopers around the door that lead into the office of General Nimoda. A man who had only held the title of Head of Senate Security for a few months and was proving to be utterly useless. 

“What is the meaning of this?” General Nimoda paled at Vader’s approached but saluted smartly.

“I apologize for the inconvenience, my lord, but when we acquired the identification card from one of the young men….you were listed as one of its guardians. “

“His,” Vader stressed the word, “guardian.” 

“Yes, well.”

“What happened?” 

“There was a fight, milord, between some of the young men who were visiting the Senate today. Several were involved.” 

Vader, finding no real explanation, pushed past the babbling man and into the office. He was both surprised and unsurprised by what he saw. 

There were five young men in total, not including Luke. A young twi’lek boy who was crying to himself, wearing nearly pointless binders. He was the only one cuffed. The five boys, probably the antagonists, were all mildly bruised. They were surrounded by their fathers, generals, and admirals he recognized. Most of them were smirking openly a Luke, who was restrained by two stormtroopers who kept tight grips on his shoulders. 

It was a blatant misbalance of power. Luke was seemingly under the mockery and scrutiny of higher ranking officers and officials and at their tender mercies. For the twi’lek boy, crying, it was obviously an intimidation tactic.

“What is the meaning of this?” Vader stared at his son, who visibly fumed. Eight voice erupted at once until he held up a hand. “Where is the recording of the incident?” 

“A recording?” The stormtrooper Sargeant fumbled for a holo disk and held it out. Vader, ignoring the people around him, activated it. 

The scene was not shocking. Five troublemakers, all standing in front of their father’s, paled as the recording showed them surrounding the young twi’lek, clearly intent on attacking. After a moment of roughing up, Luke appeared. 

Five to one was not a fair fight, but Luke did his best. For all his stormtrooper training and experience as a thief in the night, Luke gave as good as he got. Like anyone who fought a group of semi-trained but inexperienced bullies, Luke ended with a fair number of bruises. It ended when a horde of stormtroopers broke it up. 

Vader glanced at his son. He sported a black eye, a busted lip, his eyebrow was bleeding sluggishly. A scan from the force revealed a few more injuries that his clothes hide. 

“I wonder,” he turned slowly, maximising the fear already radiating from the culprits and their fathers. “What your excuse was? Such cowardly antics, foolish brats, to attack a single defenseless victim?” Luke sputtered angrily, and Vader waved. 

All eyes drew to the twi’lek, still crying, as the handcuffs unlocked themselves and slipped off.

“My lord,” General Ranton began, but he fell silent when Vader fixed him with a piercing stare.

“If this is how such behavior is tolerated so far into your training and education,” the Sith continued, nodding to the boy's uniforms they wore, belonging to a local military academy. “It will be a wonder how the Imperial Navy will contend with such undisciplined whelps at the helm.” 

Taking the cue, every officer in the room dragged their son out, whispering furiously at them. Vader could sense the anger in his officers. 

He waved the stormtroopers from the room until he was left with Luke and the twi’lek lad. He turned to the young alien. “Where are your guardians?”

“In the med-center. I was just going down to meet them, and those boys jumped me.” Vader sighed to himself. As soon as he had the boy retrieved by concerned parents, he turned to Luke. 

“You are reckless, young one.” He told the blond, who hadn’t spoken or moved much since he’d arrived. 

“I’m fine.” Luke spat, his temper hadn’t abated in the slightest. 

“I did not ask,” Vader pointed out, and knelt beside Luke, who was now favoring his right arm. Luke flinched but didn’t move away when Vader reached for him. “You are injured.” 

“I’m fine.” 

“Come,” he stood, gesturing for the blond to follow. Luke obeyed reluctantly, Vader didn’t speak until they were back at the residence, not trusting his son to reply to anything he said without losing his already strained temper. 

“They accused me of starting that fight,” Luke muttered bitterly only when they were in the hanger. “They wanted me to feel bad about it. All of those generals and admirals told me it was all my fault.” 

“You were serving as a protector,” Vader said, steering a curiously cooperative Luke into the residence. 

“I’m going to go to bed.” Luke tried to pull away, glowering when Vader kept a grip on his arm. 

“Only after you are seen to,” Vader replied, tugging the reluctant blond into the kitchen. There he sat Luke down and summoned a med-kit.

“I’m fine,” Luke protested, “really. I just need a few band-aids. I’m fine, really.” 

“If you do not sit down and behave then I will send for a doctor and the necessary equipment. Including scanners and an x-ray if needed.” 

“Fine.” He grabbed the box from the air and set it on the table.

“Remove your shirt.” Luke’s glower was a special brand of mutinous that he recognized from his years as Ahsoka’s teacher. 

Vader had been correct. Luke’s side was a bruise, but a simple glance indicated that nothing was broken or too badly damaged. 

“I’m not sorry.” 

“I would be astonished if you were,” Vader replied. He set a cotton-ball soaked in anti-septic against Luke’s bleeding forehead. He flinched and bit his lip, saying nothing. “That was still reckless to engage five opponents at once.” 

“They didn’t have a reason to attack him,” Luke muttered, looking away from his father’s mask. “They just attacked because they were bigger and stronger and could get away with it.” 

“They might have.” 

“Maybe with the law and their parents, but they got a beat down from me which means they didn’t get away with it totally.” 

“I doubt that after such an embarrassing display that their fathers are much pleased with them,” Vader said, finishing cleaning the cut on Luke’s forehead and sealing it behind a bacta-patch.

“They were so smug. Like I was going to be sent to the spice mines of Kessel and they were going to get a chance to beat me up again.” 

Vader hummed to himself, knowing the vocoder wouldn’t pick it up. He inwardly admired how Luke seemed totally unafraid of him, even as vulnerable as he was. Nor did his son seem to think it too strange that his father was administering to him instead of someone else. 

“You are still angry.” 

“I AM ANGRY!” Luke slammed a fist on the table as he shouted, glowering at Vader despite that tears now in his eyes. “It wasn’t a fair fight! They were being some stuck-up bullies and fighting to get what they want and being horrible! I hate bullies!” 

It was far more animation and passion than he was used to seeing from his son. 

“There is no need to shout. I am right in front of you.” 

“Sorry.” Luke settled back onto the chair, only slightly modified. Vader carefully wrapped a set of bacta soaked bandages around Luke’s torso, carefully hiding a tracking device within the folds of the bandages. “Are you angry at me?” The boy ventured after a long moment of near silence. 

“No, your actions, were noble if foolish. I would not have preferred to have you met some of my admirals and generals in such manner, however, what is done is done.” 

Luke glanced up, looking every inch the beaten waif he had been once. Sitting at the kitchen tables, bandaged and shirtless, he couldn’t have looked more helpless. Which Vader knew to be false. As the final touch, Vader produced a small container of painkiller, the kind that someone could swallow. 

“I don’t need that.” 

“You will take it,” the Sith ordered. 

“I don’t need it.” Luke crossed his arms, careful of his newly bandaged knuckles. 

“You do, and you will take it. I will not have your mother returning to the house to find you bruised and bloody.”

“I’m fine.” Luke insisted, and Vader held the two pills above him. 

“You will, young man. I will not have you being recklessly contrary to the matter of your health.” 

“But.” 

“If your mother was handing you this, would you argue?” 

“Mom is a trained professional.” 

“Take them.” Luke glowered and obeyed as reluctantly as he had the entire evening. “You have school in the morning as well as a meeting with your doctor afterward. Do not be late to it and do not dally on returning to the residence tomorrow.”

“Why?” Luke pulled his shirt back on, wincing the whole time. 

“It is not safe for one as young as you to be out and about too long.” 

“I don’t want to be cooped up in the house or in the senate dome. Why can’t I go out and do stuff?” 

“You are prone to trouble.” 

“I am not! I’m don’t go getting to fights without good reason. “

“No.”

“But why not! This is so frustrating and annoying! I don’t need an escort all the time! Don’t you trust me on my own?” 

“No,” Vader began to pack up the med-kit. 

“What if you went with me?” Luke tried to bargain, Vader paused. “Come on, what if you went with me? You could go out on the town with me and we could…make a day of it?” 

“Son.” 

“Please, Papa.” Luke tugged on his cape, looking caged and desperate. “Mom’s been gone for a week now, and all I’ve done is study and stay in the house for a whole week. Can’t we do something?” 

“Luke.” 

“Please!” Vader glanced down at the blond and decided that the best way to curtain any chaos his son would try to sow would have to be mitigated by giving in.

“Very well!” 

“Yes!” Luke pumped his fist in the air, cheering to himself. 

Vader left his son to Ryoo, who barged into the kitchen a moment later. When he heard his niece fussing to Luke outraged protests he comforted himself with the mild revenge.


	31. Meltdown.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ezra is King.   
> Luke and Vader go shopping and shit goes down.

Zuden’s small sun gleamed over the new spires of its new palace where its new King lifted his head at the sound of his door being shoved violently open. Years of street living told Ezra that it was Imperials raiding whatever hidey hole he was in. 

Without a second thought, Ezra rolled off his bed. Hand going to the slingshot under his pillow, he landed in a defensive crouch and waited for the person to come into a clear line of sight. It had been ages since the Imps had managed to grab him while he slept and he. 

“King Delyn!” Ezra felt his attention snap. He wasn’t hiding from Imps. He was wearing pajamas, he’d slept in bed, and he was waiting to be attacked in his bedroom. Except that it wasn’t an attack. It was a voice he recognized. 

Dorme. His helper, or, handmaiden as he preferred. 

He was a king. 

“Dorme?” He called, “stop kicking the door, there’s stuff in the way.” 

“Are you alright?” She demanded, “Ezra?” 

“I’m fine,” he set the slingshot down and went to move the chairs from in front of the door. When he had, Dorme rushed through blaster at the ready. She scanned the room of threats and only released when she found none. “What’s wrong?” 

“I came to wake you, and I couldn’t get in. It’s not safe for you to barricade yourself in your room.”

 

“It is safe if the Imps come,” Ezra blurted, “I mean, well, you know.” 

“Ah,” Dorme said awkwardly, “I was briefed on it. I’m sorry I didn’t take it into consideration. We’ll come up with something for tonight, alright? “

“Sure,” Ezra looked down at his pajamas. “Do I need to go be king?” 

“Yes,” she made toward his closet and marched in, “you’re going to be doing a few publicity tours. A few interviews with a newspaper, then you’re going to be touring the university, and then a few hours of meditation.” 

“What the heck is meditation?” Ezra asked, following her into the closet. “Why would I do that?” 

“Meditation is code for class work. It’s probably better that you start learning more now that you’re king. We don’t want to have to whisper in your ear forever.” 

“I guess,” Ezra said dubiously, and shook his head when she held up a gray suit. “That’s way to Impy. What about that red and gold one?” 

“A little too ostentatious, maybe later.” 

“Why?” Ezra fingered the edge of the sleeve and watched Dorme pull an outfit of bright blue and yellow out. 

“You need neutral colors to seem non-threatening. Bright colors can be confused, and dark colors are threatening.” She set the blue and yellow outfit back. “It’s a good thing that Gohan has set this up for your different stages of ruling. I know gray is too Imperial, but what do you think of a tan?” 

“That’s okay; I don’t know much about fashion. I watched my first fashion show the other day. Um, Gohan came into my room and watched it. It was by this guy named Gentleman. He seems really good. I know there was a big fuss because he had aliens walking.” 

“People are still frothing at the mouth,” Dorme muttered, “I can’t believe he had the guts to do it.” 

“But why does it matter? I mean, they’re just aliens. Why can’t they wear funny looking clothes and stuff? Why don’t they get to show off too?” Ezra accepted the next outfit that Dorme pulled down. She turned to the racks of headpieces and jewelry on the far wall. Each niche was lit with a single light that shone down on the pieces. There were bracelets and necklaces and crowns and rings and earrings. Ezra was pretty sure that Gohan had had too much fun with the wall of jewelry. 

“There are a lot of human-centric ideas and such that are prevalent in the galaxy. Aliens bodies can be seen as ugly or undesirable, or exotic enough to make humans want them. Well, you’ve probably seen a number of twi’lek dancers?” 

“Not on Lothal. The only twi’lek ladies I ever met owned a ship repair business. They were really nice. Sometimes they’d let me sleep in their attic. They always had a lot of extra beds and blankets. Sometimes they had a lot family visit.” Ezra considered his memories, “they had a lot of family. But,” Ezra pointed a simple crown that Dorme frowned over. “I did see Twi’lek dancers on the holo at bars.”

“Well, that’s the thing. Twi’lek women are one of the most trafficked. They make up most the slaves in,” Dorme paused and considered her next words.

“Whorehouses?” Ezra asked. Dorme bit her lip and closed her eyes. “I’ve been on the streets for a while. I learned a lot.” 

“I’m.” To stave off the inevitable pity, he shrugged. 

“It’s okay.” 

“Brothels,” Dorme said firmly in an effort to move the conversation back on track. “Yes, they are traded against the wills, from almost any age, for a life of…horrible stuff.” 

“Okay?” 

“So twi’leks are too sexualized. Even young twi’lek girls can’t escape it. Then, on the other hand, to some degree are togruta’s too. It’s not nearly as bad. Then, on the opposite end are rodians, bothans, wookies, and a dozen others. In human-centric media, they rarely get to see themselves a handsome or sexy, or as themselves. Since most of the media is controlled by the Empire, it became almost never.” 

“So the fashion show was important?” 

“It was too many people. My friend Fulcrum told me that she watched and felt celebrated instead of used. As if she was a piece of art and the clothes were a compliment to her, not an advertisement.” 

“So?” 

“Representation matters, Ezra. That show was broadcast almost everywhere. High ranking Imperial officers were in attendance at the party, it was one of the most watched shows in the history of fashion. They couldn’t have cut off the broadcast just because an alien walked onto the stage. Gentleman forced the Imperials watching and the Core worlders watching to acknowledge their unique beauty. There are some people who are so violently xenophobic that they are demanding Gentleman be executed for his daring.” 

“Don’t like, a lot of people want his clothes though?” Dorme set the clothes on the bed and moved into the refresher where she began to run a bath. Ezra, still not used to the idea of helping him get dressed and ready for the day, hung back by the door. 

“Oh, yes. He made a gown for Lady Vader that I just,” she held her hand to her chest, “it was amazing. Honestly, it was one of the most beautiful pieces I’ve ever seen. I’ve seen some really fantastic gowns. That cloak, I have no idea how he made it.” 

“I get it,” Ezra said flatly, “he has nice clothes. Are you really telling me that people are flipping out because there were some people in some clothes on the holo?” 

“That’s the gist of it.”

“Because they don’t like seeing those sorts of people on the holo?” 

“Yes.” 

“That sounds dumb,” Ezra said finally. “I hope we don’t do anything like that on Zuden. I mean, I know we’re sorta the new people but still.” 

“We won’t be on Zuden forever. Today we begin really moving our con into action. I know you don’t know much of how it goes, which might be for the better. Still, we also have to fill you in on some of the details.” 

“Well, I get to be King!” Dorme stood and gestured to the nearly full bathtub. “How many kids my age are kings?” 

“There’s a girl your age who is the Queen of Naboo.”

“You’re kidding.” 

“She’s just a little older than you. She is the queen.” 

“Is she a good queen?” Ezra asked as Dorme moved past him to leave him to bathe.

“She,” Dorme paused, “she does her best. I suppose that it’s the best that I can ask of her.” She left, and Ezra shrugged. A second later he was carefully lowering himself into the scalding water. 

He didn’t hate being a fake king. It really wasn’t so bad all things considering. Plus, he got the extra perks of being utterly clueless and still getting the benefits of everything going on around him. It was also better than picking the pockets of Imperial officers. If he saw them again, he wondered if he could have them killed. 

When he was clean and dry and dressed, almost, Ezra let Dorme fuss over his hair and make-up. He didn’t hate being painted over, but he didn’t like the taste of the lip gloss and wondered how people wore it.

Gohan seemed amused by his outfit. 

“Neutral colors?” She held her caf cup up at Dorme, who seemed tensely annoyed. “A nice statement.” 

“It is necessary. We need him to see likable to the civilians on Zuden.” 

“Sure,” Gohan downed her caf. Ezra could smell it from the other side of the breakfast table. It was too strong for him to stomach probably. Anyway, he was still getting used to eating real food again on a regular basis. 

“I don’t mind the tan,” he held out his arms, “I wore an orange jumpsuit for years. This is great.” 

“That is great, Ezra. Remember the prince books you read?” 

“I remember them. I’m not an idiot.” 

“You’ve been a king for a week now. You’re the biggest problem,” Gohan stole the last cheese pastry from the middle of the table. Ezra glowered, “is that two schemes are going on right now. Well, more first is the one to draw the Hutts in. We’re going to convince them that the evil and corrupt staff of the palace.”

“You?” 

“Yes, and the others. Most of them are notable criminals. It’ll seem realistic. The point it, we’re going to stage a fake coup. While we’re planning the ‘coup,’ we’re also going to be cozying up to the Hutts. Who, for various reasons, are going to be frantic to find a planetary government that will support them. One that has no history with anybody.’

“So why do we want the Hutts to like you?” 

“Sorry, Ezra, ignorance will probably help us sell your part better. The second scheme is that we’re actually going to be helping improve Zuden. That means you’re going to be talking to the people. It looks good on camera.” 

“Okay,” he settled for eating in silence while Dorme frowned mightily at Gohan. 

$%$%4

Dhara stared at the rock on the other end of her bed with a glare the told the rock that if it didn’t behave and do as she ordered, that she’d throw it out the window. The rock didn’t seem impressed.

“Okay,” she held out a hand and closed her eyes, breathing deeply. “Lift the rock. Lift the rock. It’s not a diamond. I can do this.” She kept her eyes closed and tried to imagine the rock. Visualizing the little dents and curves and angles, imagining the color and size. She tried to imagine it rising off the bedspread, lifting into the air. It wobbled because she didn’t want to pretend that she could lift it steadily. 

She peeked. The rock hadn’t moved. 

“Come on, rock! Lift!”She closed her eyes again and concentrated with every fiber of her being. It felt like she was holding her breath, even though she was careful to breathe deeply and regularly.

For a much as she was concentrating, it felt like she was knocking her head against a rock. Like she was facing down the absolute laws of reality and trying to break them. There was now way that she was going to get the rock to float. Dhara scowled and reached out even harder, her hands shaking.

She imagined picking the rock up, holding it in her hand. She imagined carrying it around, but she had to pick it up. 

“Come on!” 

Something snapped. Light seemed to flood her mind and pour into every cell, Dhara opened her eyes and watched the rock wobble a few inches above the bedspread. The longer it hung there, the more she was aware of how her body was vibrating with the new power. 

“What?” She tried to focus on how her whole body seemed to light up, her focus was lost, and it vanished. The rock plopped back onto the bed. “WHAT?” She stared at the rock, amazed and a little frightened. Her hands came around to press against her mouth, “oh my god!” 

She’d lifted the rock! She’d done it! She’d gotten it off her bed! For a second she wiggled from side to side, elated and overjoyed. 

This had to be the force! For a moment she wavered and held out a hand. She remembered the light, the power, the softness of it, and reached again. 

It came easier this time, easing into her mind and body as if slowly becoming accustomed to her. The light settled around her shoulders, and she grinned.

“Come on, rock,” Dhara reached for the rock with her mind and grinned as it rose into the air again. This time it got higher, rising inch by inch. 

“DHARA!” The knock on her door shattered her focus. Dhara jerked at the lost connection to the light as the door opened. Control paused just inside the door, looking between her and the rock. Her wild expression must have been a cause for some concern because Control cleared her throat. “That rock better not be some newfangled drug that kids are getting into.” 

“It’s not! It’s, uh, a rock.”

“I can see that.” 

“It’s Mr. Fatty’s,” Dhara lied hastily. The loth-cat took the opportunity to jump up onto her window sill and flounce across the bed. It settled onto the rock and glowered balefully at Control. “See?” 

“Why does that cat want a rock?” Control didn’t seem to believe her. 

“Why do cats want anything?” Dhara shrugged, “he’s a cat.” She patted his wide ears. Mr. Fatty grumbled but settled onto her bed, still smothering the rock. “Do you need something?” 

“Not really, I’m bored. I thought you might like to go down and watch the gossip rags throw a fit over Gentleman’s collection.” 

“You want to watch prime-time holo with me?” Dhara climbed off the bed and swooped behind to pick up Mr. Fatty. As an afterthought, she picked up the rock. “Sure! I got all my homework done already, so I’ve got nothing better to do.” Mr. Fatty yowled in her arms but settled down as she followed Control down the living room. The older woman stared at the cat and shrugged as it hopped out of Dhara’s arms and stole the most comfortable seat on the couch. “He’s a cat,” Dhara set, indulgently moving away from the spot the animal had claimed, “what can you do?” 

“Eat him,” Control suggested. Mr. Fatty hissed, and Dhara glowered.

“You can’t eat my cat.”

“Make him into a muff; he’s got a nice pattern. Goodness knows he’d be fashionable.” 

“Control!” 

“I’m just saying if you misbehave enough. Gentleman might decide to take your kitty.” Tove took immense pleasure in the aghast glare that Dhara shot her. She picked up the loth-cat and cuddled him closer as Tove took the most comfortable spot on the couch. 

“He wouldn’t dare turn him into a muff.” 

“You don’t know that.” 

“I do!” 

Dhara held Mr. Fatty closer, and Tove chuckled as she clicked on the holo. 

#$#$#$#

“I can’t believe you!” The first thing Luke heard in class the next day, was Meeko Tarkin shouting at him. The teacher hadn’t arrived yet, and most of the students were talking to their friends. Luke, who hadn’t made a real friend yet, stared at Meeko and retrained the urge to roll his eyes. 

“What did I do?” 

“My mom told my dad what happened when you left early your first day!” Meeka plopped on her seat and spun around to glare at Luke. He set his datapad on his desk and waited for her to continue. “I was listening in, and I heard too! I can’t believe you asked my Grandfather if he was dating the,” her voice lowered to a whisper, “the Emperor!” 

“How hard was your mom laughing?” Luke asked after a moments deliberation. Meeko rolled her eyes. 

“A lot, that’s not the point! That was super rude!” 

“So was sending a raving lunatic to drag me out of school. Seriously, what is it about dark side juice that makes people nuts?” 

“Your father drinks that ‘dark side juice,’” she made air quotes, “you don’t sass him about it, do you?” 

“All the time,” Luke said. Meeko blinked. “Especially when he says stuff like, I have to face the Trials of Darkness and rejuvenate my powers. Like, who even says stuff like that? This isn’t a bad holo-film. It was ridiculous.” 

“You sass your father?” Meeko covered her mouth with her hand but grinned. “Really?” 

“Yep, if you think I’m sarcastic, you should hear mom. She’s worse.” 

“I can believe it. Did you know they spent the whole gala talking about physics and science? Grandfather was just like, I can’t join this conversation at all!” 

“That was probably the point.” 

“Urgh, I know. I think it’s so cool your parents can talk about science like that. I didn’t know that your father didn’t know about anyone else besides flying and cutting people up.” 

“Cutting people up is my moms specialty,” Luke said, trying hard not to be offended by her bluntness. Meeko stared at him, before bursting into laughter. “What?” 

“I forgot that your mom was a surgeon! That was funny!” 

“Thanks,” Luke said. 

“Oh my gosh!” Meeko’s attention whiplashed around, “what did you get for family day? Is it your first family day with a family right? Did they get you something special? My mom got me a star map. It’s amazing; I love it. She got my little brother a box. Like, just a box. I don’t know what he wants with a box, but he just loves it. Dad picked out my other brother’s presents. He drew this little cartoon sketch for my littlest brother and then he made this little-stuffed animal thing for my little sister. He does stuff like that.” Meeko pointed to her headband, “he made this for me. Isn’t it pretty?” 

“It is,” Luke replied, swimming his way up from the hastily babbled word flood. Meeko didn’t seem to mean offense. She was just excited. “I got a pocket watch.” 

“A what?” 

“Erm,” Luke pulled his pocket watch out and set it on the desk. “This, it’s a time-piece.” 

“It’s little. Can I pick it up?” 

“Sure.”

“Does it only keep time for one planet?” 

“Yeah, my mom had one, but it's way beating up. This one is brand new.”

“This stuff is expensive. Those are individually made gears. Holy cow, hos much did this cost?” 

“I don’t know. It’s not polite to ask.” 

“I guess not,” Meeko passed it back. “It’s really pretty. Why isn’t the last name on it?” 

“It’s not, I haven’t picked out which one I want to use.” 

“Oh, neat.” Meeko tilted her head to the side. Luke was reminded forcibly of the Grand Moff. “I also heard you got into a fight at the Senate.” 

“You listen to too much gossip.” 

“That’s not a no,” she pointed out. Luke shrugged. “I like you. You made my Grandfather furious, and you beat up a bunch of bullies. Good job.” 

“I’ll pay you a credit if you call the governor, Grampers,” Luke grinned. 

“I’ll do it for free,” Meeko laughed, and the teacher walked into the room. 

“Everyone settle down, let’s get started. Sorry that I’m late, the line at the café was long.” 

#$#$#$

Vader considered his different shopping cloaks. There was a red one, green, for some reason a yellow one, a pale pink one, and one of deep purple. There weren’t any that suited his position as a sith lord. On previous trips with Jifus, or simply to go collect used ship parts on his own, he’d used any.

Still, in case anything did happen, he needed to look as Sithly as possible. He pulled out the purple cloak and sighed at himself for promising the boy an evening out of the residence.

Even if the absence of his wife was enough to make the residence seem too quiet and pale. He wouldn’t admit to it. 

When he was ready, he made his way to the living room, where he found Ryoo oozed out over the couch and eating take-out from a greasy container. 

“Ryoo,” he crossed his arms and waited for the teenager to respond. She did so eventually, tilting her head back enough to see him. Brown eyes widened as she took him in. 

“Wow, is that you?” 

“Yes,” he said, “remove your shoes from the couch.”

“That is a good look for you,” Ryoo said, lifting her head and wiggling around on the couch until she could look at him properly. “Nice! Where are you going?” 

“Shopping!” Luke skidded into the room, grinning broadly and carrying a leather pack. He looked like a young street urchin. A clean and better-dressed street urchin, but still. Vader forced himself not to command Luke to get changed. “We’re going on a trip!” 

“What are you shopping for?”

“Stuff and things,” Luke shrugged and grinned at his father. “Come on! I’ve been waiting for this all day!”

“If I receive a message from the school that you have not been attending to your studies well,” Vader let the words trail of threateningly. Luke didn’t seem afraid. He supposed that after everything that Luke had faced and the criminals he’d robbed, being scolded by his father didn’t register very high on his list of threats. “Are you prepared?”

“Sure am!” Vader considered Luke. The longer he lived her, the less of a caged animal look he seemed to carry. Certainly the boy was still nervous and uncomfortable at moments, but he seemed to be calming down. That seemed to be good news.

“Then we will depart,” Vader chose to ignore Ryoo’s bemused expression, and escorted Luke to the hanger where the secondary exit waited. 

Twenty minutes later both Vader and Luke were in the lower markets, far from the Royal Grid and the Imperial City. A place where the laws were more likely to be broken and more freedom enjoyed. He waited beside Luke, peering from their small alcove at the busy crowd and the busier vendors. Hordes of people pushed through the streets, almost making the Sith feel claustrophobic. 

They’d exited the turbo lift at the food end of the market. Food carts and ships parked the farthest. If he’d been able to smell, he would have smelled a mix of burning oils, spices, sugars, and cooking meat. He’d been here often enough as Anakin Skywalker that he let the memory fill his senses until he was nearly able to pretend. 

There were a dozen new stalls, and yet some he remembered. Their keepers were older and more tired, but they were recognizable. Someone had installed a place to sell popular candy and Vader was somewhat cheered to see it nearly empty of customers. 

Without thinking, he reached out and seized Luke’s pack before he could run off to a stall and buy his weight in sweets and food. 

“Papa!” Luke protested, twisting around as Vader held him firmly. 

“No,” he commanded, “if you are going to be getting anything then you will only be receiving what I deem allowed.” 

“But you don’t even know this place! Come on!” 

“As Niles as never brought you here,” Vader said, “I can imagine of no circumstance that could have brought you here.” There was a flash of annoyance in Luke’s eyes. “As I have been on this planet longer than you have, I am confident in my abilities to navigate a market.” 

“Come on!”

“No, continue to whine and run off, and I will invest in a child-leash.” 

“I could get it off.” 

“I doubt it,” Vader absently scanned the booths, only partly leaning his head out of the alcove. There was a stall that sold spicy noodles. Padme had eaten more of that than he’d ever seen the one time he’d brought her here. It was one of the few places that made them spicy enough to satisfy her pregnancy cravings. 

Another stall where he’d taken Ahsoka for lunch one afternoon to help her feel better about losing a sparring match against Offee. 

Since it wasn’t a question if he should start by Luke a snack. It was a matter of what he should get the boy. “Come,” he tugged, and Luke obeyed if a bit sulkily.

“But I wanted.” 

“You will tolerate what I chose, son. It will serve perfectly adequate.”

“But adequate isn’t any fun,” Luke groused as the stopped to join the line of a vendor selling some sort of meat and break combination. 

Since Luke had been headed for the fried fruit pies, Vader wasn’t particularly sympathetic.

“What’ll it be,” the vendor owner beamed at the enormous Sith and then at Luke, “ah, shopping day? Special occasion then? What can I tempt you with?” 

“The simplest, if you please.” Vader watched Luke droop dramatically.

“That’ll be a plain meat bun!” The man opened one of the heated compartments and dug out a patty with a pair of silver tongs. He plopped it into the center of a stiff cardboard box and passed it to Vader who passed it to Luke. 

“Thank you,” Luke said dutifully as Vader passed over payment. 

“Your welcome,” the man said cheerfully as Vader stepped away. As they rejoined the crowds, Luke looked up at him and tugged on his sleeve. 

“Thank you.” In reply, Vader set a hand on his head and patted. “Where to?” 

“I have a few engine parts to look for.” 

“Is it another one of those ships you’re donating to the museum?” 

“Yes,” 

“Huh.” 

“The junk dealers are on the lower level though,” Vader said, guiding Luke past a dug in pilots clothes who was eyeing the lad too closely. The alien looked too much like Sebulba for Vader’s piece of mind. “Whatever else we need, we will get first.”

“Alright,” Luke said past a mouthful of pastry. Just like Ahsoka, he was far easier to direct around the market if he was eating something. “Mom wants some more ground bee honey from Lothal. If we can find it. Um, I know Deno is running low on a few spices.”

“We will begin there,” Vader said, and he waded through the masses of shoppers. 

The located the ground bee honey easily. Luke thought the price was a bit much, but his father paid with only a few moments of bargaining. The small jar was tucked into his pack, despite his protests. As were the next few things that his father bought. 

“You know, if you wanted a place to pack the stuff away, you could have brought your own pack.” 

“I am aware,” his father replied. “Hold still.”

“I am holding still,” Luke whined, mostly for show, and he turned around when his father clicked the last fasten into place. “What else do we need from the food area?” 

“Nothing,” the Sith said.

“LUKE!” Luke and Vader turned to see a tall girl standing over a counter and waving. “LUKE!”

“Do you know her?” Luke shrugged, she looked a little familiar. He jogged across the walkway and toward her. When he reached the booth, selling enormous sandwiches, he did remember who she was. Two grades ahead of him, but they shared literature class. 

“Luke,” Aeon leaned over the counter and grinned at him, “I thought that was you. You look so different when you’re not in uniform. Not so old and severe.” 

“You too,” Luke gestured at her apron and hairnet. “What are you doing here?”

“This?” She gestured at the stall, a few customers sitting on the stools, looked at him with a distinct lack of interest. “This belongs to my family. I’m at the school with a culinary scholarship. I love food. Love to make it and love to eat it.” 

“I know,” Luke said just as his father joined him. 

“You know what they say!” Aeon beamed, “never trust a skinny or unhappy chef! Oh, hello.”

“Aeon, this is my father. Father, this is Aeon. She and I have a literature class together.”

“We sure do!” Aeon held out a hand, “did he tell you how distracted he was today?” 

“No,” Luke gaped as his father shook her hand, “Luke?” 

“I wasn’t distracted. I swear.” 

“Sure,” Aeon winked at him, “Luke’s dad, he was so distracted. He didn’t even notice when the teacher called on him.” 

“Luke,” mostly for effect, Vader made his voice rumble, and Luke threw his hands in the air. 

“Stop snitching on me!” Aeon threw her head back and laughed. Luke began to laugh too. “I thought you liked me?” 

“I do! I like you a lot! You’re just an easy target!” Aeon turned as someone shouted her name. “Got to go. Bye, Luke. Bye, Luke’s dad.” She was gone a second later, and Luke turned to his father. 

“She didn’t realize.” 

“No,” Vader affirmed, “no doubt the realization will come later.” 

“Oh, this is going to be fun.” Luke rubbed his hands together as they proceeded down the market. “I get to lord this over her forever!” 

“You will be polite and respectful,” Vader ordered. “Though I am sure her reaction will be amusing.” 

“Totally,” Luke agreed. Their path took them through the wares section of the market. Where people sold nick-nacks and things that they didn’t really need. Antiques from all over the galaxy usually ended up on one of those tables. Vader recognized most of them and felt uncharacteristically old as some of the stuff he’d used and worked with here hawked as ‘vintage.’ There were some promising droid parts, a few pieces of clone armor, including a helmet with a circle painted on the side. A few bootleg and out of date calendars featuring modeling clones. He didn’t want to know why the clones had posed for the calendars and didn’t want to find out. 

One section of the market was dedicated solely to pornographic materials. Some of them raunchy enough that he clapped a hand over Luke’s eyes and hauled him through the walkway. A few vendors shouted at him, words he didn’t care to understand, and most of them laughed knowingly. Thankfully, Luke didn’t protest or shout at him. When he set the boy down, uncovering his eyes, he was blushing. 

Neither of them mentioned it as they moved further into the market. 

#$#$#$

For as much as she complained about not being sure where she sat in her husband’s heart, Jifus was deeply disappointed when no one answered her comm call. The ‘wait please’ signal continued to pulse in front her, along with the mind-numbing beeps that accompanied it. 

She was up at five in the morning, and it could only be about six on the planet. Why wasn’t he picking up? He might not be there. It was possible he was out of on official business. 

Still, it hurt her feelings when the call rolled over to the answering machine. Jifus disconnected it before she could leave a message. 

She wondered what he could be doing.

##$#

Vader was haggling with the current owner of a bolt of raw Nubian silk. The pale blue fabric had been priced astronomically high, and Vader had set his attention on it as soon as they’d turned the corner and saw it. 

To avoid looking desperate, Vader bought other things a few stalls away. To indicate to the seller that someone who was doing more than browsing could come by. He bought a few ribbons. He wasn’t sure what he’d used them for, but Luke had been fascinated by them. Then he’d gotten different sets of buttons, some different colored threads, and a beginner’s embroidery kit for Luke. Judging by the expression on his son’s face, it had been a good purchase. 

Just as he’d set his sights on the fabric, the seller had set their sights on him. As soon as he walked into the vendor’s bubble, Vader was accosted. 

“Ah! A gentleman who has fine taste!” The vendor, a rodian, oozed a grin at him. “I can see you have a good eye. What can I get for you?” 

“I am not sure yet,” Vader watched Luke wander off through the small stall. He also followed, cataloging the various fabrics and the different designs and dyes. A fine shade of gray in Axillian cotton caught his eyes. 

“Ah! Axillian cotton!” The vendor materialized at his side. “Imported directly from that little world. Do you know anything about it?” Apparently, Vader’s silence indicated he did not. “I know the High Lord Protector personally.” If the Force hadn’t told him it was a lie, Vader still would have known. His mother-in-law would slap irons on a man selling this sort of stuff for so expensive. The cotton was in good conditions, but not worth this much. “She’s such a lovely woman, so kind and thoughtful. She owns this little farm out in the Ara Farmlands, grows cotton and all sorts of stuff.” 

Gozus Piett owned a plot of land on the Ari Great Plains and raised eopie, sheps, and some nerfs. She was hardly there and leased the land out to different people. 

“Doesn’t sell any of the stuff she grows. She gave me this bolt of fine cotton almost as soon as it was made. The other siblings of this one have all been sold off. I’ll give you a special price for it, just for you.” 

It had been so long since anyone had treated him so normally, that Vader felt like laughing. 

“It does seem to be good quality,” Vader admitted slowly, his modified echoing his own almost perfectly. “I am looking for something a little lighter.” 

“In color or fabric?” 

“Color and fabric.” He let the shopkeeper escort him around the different fabric, explaining what they were and their color. Alongside making up wildly inaccurate stories about each one. For a while he didn’t care about the noise. Eventually he pointed up to the bolt of silk.

“Ah! Nubian silk, it’s beautiful, isn’t it? I just think it’s lovely. It’s 650 a yard.” 

“You don’t need to spend that much on fabric, Papa,” Luke chimed in. Vader grinned at the ugly glare the vendor shot his son.

“650 is a steep price,” Vader agreed and turned away. “Luke, let’s go.

 

“630?”

“You have to eat dinner at home,” Vader continued to usher Luke out of the shop, “I will not indulge your love for junk food.” 

“610?” 

Vader paused, “250,” he countered. Luke giggled at him, and the man turned red. 

“This is raw Nubian silk!”

“It’s faded from the light.” 

“600!” 

“280.”

“580!” 

“300.”

“550!” 

“330, final offer. If I take that home, I have to clean it. Nubian silk does not clean easily. 

“490!”

“We’re leaving, Luke,” Vader turned around.

“Oh, come on! 490 for Nubian silk is a great price!” 

“You lied to me about the cotton’s origins. I know the High Lord Protector Piett, I assure you, that she is not a pleasant woman and she raises animals, not plants.”

“Well, I.” 

“370, final offer.” Vader cheered to himself when the man sighed and nodded. 

“370, how much do you want?” 

“The whole bolt?” 

Seemingly cheered, the vendor pulled the bolt down, and wrapped it in protective plastic. Vader paid, and they left. Eventually, he noticed Luke smirking. 

“What is it?” 

“You bargain like an old lady,” Luke pointed out, “I was impressed.” 

“Good,” he adjusted the heavy fabric under his arm and watched Luke whisk off into the crowd to investigate something or other. Since he’d managed to score such a beautiful batch of silk, he hardly noticed that Luke was missing longer than usual. 

He came out of a junk dealers shop, a basket of parts slung over his shoulder, calling for the boy. Luke was nowhere in the crowds. Vader searched through the force even as he opened his comm and dialed in Luke’s tracking chip. Since it was still hidden in his bandages, Vader followed the dot to a section of the market where the more ‘reputable’ vendors had their stalls. 

This was where upper-crust citizens came to shop and pretend they’d experienced something exotic. 

A knot of stormtroopers caught his attention, and Vader’s heart sank as he felt Luke’s force presence flare in fury. He forced his way through the growing crowd. The sight didn’t surprise him. 

An officer had him by his jacket and was sneering. The stormtroopers didn’t move as Luke thrashed in his grip. It was probable that his son could easily escape, but was focused on keeping his secret protected. 

“What is the meaning of this?” He thundered, making the officer look up, and the crowd fell silent. 

“This is a street rat being apprehended, citizen. Go about your business.” 

“This is my business,” Vader boomed. The people around him inched away. “When officers of the Empire transform into schoolyard brats, bullying anyone they please, it is my business.” A few people gasped, and the tension thickened. Even Luke stilled, watching his father and the officer with wide eyes. 

“Brats?” The man sputtered.

“A bully,” Vader repeated, “flaunting your pathetic power to impress a few people and try to say that you have any. No doubt taking your anger of such a pathetic posting out on an innocent bystander. So far, I cannot understand how you could be keeping this marketplace safe.”

“You,” the officer sneered, “could not comprehend what officers of the Empire must do to keep fools like you safe. Your ingratitude borders on treason, peasant!” 

“Your incompetence is more of a threat than any ingratitude you may stupidly perceive.” 

“You,” the man clearly seemed at a loss, the crowd was gathering closer to Vader’s side. Now hemming the troopers in, despite their blasters they were clearly unnerved by the sudden turn of events. “You could be arrested for sedition.”

“He just grabbed that boy,” someone chimed in. An older man, who looked around. “Kid wasn’t doing anything.” 

“He really wasn’t,” another added. 

“That officer does this all the time.” 

“He tried to arrest me for setting up my stall on the wrong spot, even though I had permission.” A shopkeeper called a second later. The crowd got angrier, the muttering spread. 

“Who are you to claim any of that?” The officer shouted, “you are a sniveling coward who won’t even show his face! You’re a pathetic animal, hiding behind a crowd.”

“You are a whimpering brat hiding behind a uniform.” Vader patience snapped, “release the boy.” 

“How dare you attempt to give me orders! Troopers! Seize that fool!” 

Vader lifted a hand, not to strangle the man or to stop the soldiers who rushed forward, but to let his head wrapping slid smoothly off. The troopers froze, someone screamed, the whole crowd seemed to shift away from him. 

The officer turned from beet red to a sickly gray in the space of a few heartbeats. 

“Troopers,” he let his vocoder switch back to his usual bass, “belay that order.” It was unnecessary; they hadn’t moved since they’d caught sight of his mask. He stared at the officer with deliberate malice. “Release my son.”

Luke slipped through a nerveless grip and ran to his side. No doubt to play up the part of a victimized child. He was right; Luke ducked to hide behind him. 

“Are you hurt?” Vader asked, and Luke shook his head silently. “Very well,” he faced the offending officer, who was quickly turning deathly white. He glanced from side to side and bolted toward the crowd. Not quickly enough, Vader seized him with the force and yanked him back. Throwing him to the ground and allowing an invisible grip to constrict around the man’s throat. He thrashed around on the ground, hand crawling at his neck. Vader pressed Luke’s face against his side, obscuring his view of the man’s death. 

Something bright and desperate yanked at him, even as Luke tried to protest the treatment through the purple fabric. 

As the man’s consciousness faded, something bright broke through Vader’s vision. 

STOP, the mental cry echoed through his head. Instinctively he allowed his victim to drop from his invisible grip. The man gasped and gagged, and was unable to rise. 

“Troopers, escort this thing to a containment cell. I will deal with him personally. Then report yourselves for dereliction of duty.” Within moments they were gone, and Vader let Luke lean away.

“What?” The crowd was still staring at him, shocked. 

“It is time to go,” he ordered and lifted his cloak back up to cover his mask. 

#$#$#

Niles watched Luke wander into the kitchen, looking dazed and confused. Lord Vader, dressed for shopping followed a moment later. The man set a bolt of blue fabric in protective wrapping on a chair and gestured at Luke. The prince handed over his backpack, and it was unpacked. Some of it wasn’t edible, but there were bags of spices, and jars of honey and sauces, that made Niles stare. 

“I take it you enjoyed shopping?” He asked Luke, who had climbed onto one of the stools and set his head onto his arms. 

“Up until the last bit when a guy tried to arrest me. Then yelled at Papa in public and then got strangled for it.” 

“I.” Niles glanced at Vader, who was still unpacking. 

“The man deserved death. He is fortunate I did not wish to ruin your innocence.” 

“Innocence,” Luke echoed dully, “sure.” Vader looked at him sharply and gestured for Niles to vacate the kitchen. He obeyed hastily and snagged a curious Deno before he could enter too. 

“You showed no worry over that mans fate earlier,” Vader did not want to loom over his son and intimidate him, it simply happened. Luke didn’t even notice. 

“You were going to kill him.” 

“I was.” 

“It’s not!” Luke sat up abruptly, “it’s not right! You can’t just go around killing people because they’ve been stupid.” 

“He would have hurt you.” 

“He probably would have, but he didn’t. Plus, you were there before anything could really happen! You could have just gotten him to stop! You didn’t need to strangle him!” 

Vader considered his son. Luke seemed half-wary of him, and half annoyed. No doubt Vader’s casual violence had unsettled him, but there was something else. 

“Perhaps not,” he admitted, Luke looked up. “There are consequences of harassing a member of my family. To reveal myself and to not punish him would have been more peculiar then to ignore his actions.” 

“I’m not talking about what’s normal!” Luke exclaimed, raising his voice. He slapped his hands on the table as he stood. “It wasn’t right. You were going to kill him!” 

“I do not see how this is any concern of yours. You went through the academies, and no doubt were taught the punishments for failure.”

“I thought they were stupid then and they’re stupid now!”

“I was not about to allow an upstart officer take his insecurities out on my son.” 

“You were posturing! You were being all dramatic and stupid!” 

Vader considered his son for a long moment. Luke seemed furious, both at his father and himself. A muddled confusion of feelings that even his son didn’t understand. Strong emotions floating free and Luke was all but drowning in them. 

“Perhaps you are correct.” 

“What?” Luke stared at him. 

“Given your familiarity with bullying officers, I believed that you would tolerate one being put into an uncomfortable position.”

“You strangled him!” Luke exclaimed, “and I can hate people like him but,” his voice choked off. There were a few minutes when he said nothing, his face turning red and he bit his lip. “It scared me,” Luke admitted after evidently parsing through his own thoughts. Vader didn’t dare pry. 

“I see,” Vader didn’t apologize, and didn’t wait for Luke to continue. “Perhaps you ought to retrieve your things?” He held up the bag, which he’d packed the presents for Luke into. 

“Oh,” like a sailboat that had capsized, Luke had no clear idea how to handle the situation. 

“Perhaps you should recover from such a difficult day,” Vader said. 

“I went to school and then shopping. It wasn’t that difficult.” Luke’s expression of confusion was both amusing and annoying. Obviously for a child that could out-con criminals, wouldn’t be tired after such a day. Like Ahsoka, he could face a never-ending stream of action and information, and still, have the energy for a battle. He would have to tire Luke out if he was going to be able to accomplish what he wanted. 

“Very well, then you may be interested in the basics of sparring?” 

“What kind of sparring? Like hand to hand, no offense but I’m a bit outsized there.” 

“Fencing.” 

“I could try that,” Luke crossed his arms, adopting an overly suspicious look that might have been appropriate in a cartoon. “Are you try to apologize?” 

“No, training will give you some tools to better deal with such people in the future.” 

“I was in the academies. I know hand to hand. I kicked the stuffing out of a bunch of jerks the other day.” 

“And yet,” Vader gestured to him, “you were also injured. Learning with weapons would not be amiss, son.” 

“I guess,” the blond said dubiously, “what about flying?” 

“We may proceed to a flying lesson after you are introduced to fencing. If you like.” As Vader had begun to observe, one of Luke’s favorite obsessions was flying. Since Vader would probably notice if he snuck out to do illegal swoop racers, Luke’s only access to flying today would be the offered lesson. With strings attached. 

“Okay, but I don’t have to learn how to hold a” Luke swallowed down a probably inappropriate descriptor of a lightsaber, “laser sword?” 

“It is all I have at the moment.” When they’d retreated to the training room, and had set out the necessary preparations; he handed the blond a training saber. The same sort of Padawan would receive or one of his inquisitors. They stood across the sparring mat, Vader with his hands on his hips, and Luke staring down at the thick handle in his hands. “This is a training saber. It is low intensity and will do little more than deflect blaster bolts.”

“Neat,” Luke stared at it, seemingly overwhelmed. Before Vader would stop him, he’d ignited the saber and held the red blade in front of him. 

“That does not mean,” Vader growled, “it cannot burn you or bruise you.” 

“It.” To Vader’s never-ending surprise, Luke settled into an easily identifiable pose. It was the most basics stance that any Jedi learned when holding a lightsaber for the first time. “Seems light. There’s no weight on it.” 

“No.” Vader felt nearly speechless as Luke swung the training saber about. It wasn’t the wild motions of a child playing with a new tool. Luke moved through the most basic kata motions that Vader hadn’t seen since he’d been at the Jedi Temple as Anakin Skywalker. “Where did you learn that?” 

“What?” Luke stopped and flushed angrily. “I don’t know. I just, it seemed right. I mean, I’m holding a light sword so?” 

“I do not believe the academies gave instructions on the sword.” 

“Some do,” Luke said promptly. “For officers who get swords with their dress uniforms. I used one once. One of the captains was nice enough to show us all the basics. I liked him,” Luke bit his lip, “I wonder what happened to him.”

“He must have been an effective teacher to teach you so much in so short a time.” Vader summoned an extra training saber and ignited it. Luke watched him warily. “How much did you learn?” 

“I don’t, GA!” Luke fell back, not Jedi-like, as Vader lunged. His fell into the stances with an ease that spoke of muscle memory and long hours of practice and parried Vader’s swipe. “PAPA! What are you doing?” 

“You seem to handle the blade well,” Vader replied, attacking swiftly, “how well?” 

“I don’t?” Despite his unsure tone, and frightened expression; Luke defended himself well. The longer they sparred, the more Jedi training Vader could see. It was the way he moved, how held the saber, how he breathed as he moved, and the intense focus in his eyes. It was classic saber training, classic and dead as the order it sprang from. 

Had some Jedi found Luke as a child and trained him? Had he been taken from his parents to train in secret in an effort to revive the order? Luke had no memories, though. What he did have were limited and stretched back only three years. As far as Vader understood, Luke’s lack of memories was an accident. Or perhaps, he considered, deliberate. 

Who had taught Luke to fence? Which Jedi- Master had survived? 

Vader faltered as a truly alarming thought raced through him. Luke nearly scored a hit against his shoulder, and Vader fell back to turn the unpleasant idea over in his head. 

Was it possible that Luke was a plant? 

A trained fencer. 

Vader fell back again and swept aside to avoid being stabbed by the training saber. Luke turned, too fast for anyone, not a Force user, and jabbed at him again. 

A force user, partly trained at least. Strong enough for him to notice. 

A plant? 

With a quick motion, Vader swept his cape up and around, ensnaring his son effortlessly. Luke yelped as his saber faded and was yanked from his grip. For a second, Vader held his son at his side; pinioned by the cloak, with his saber at his throat. 

A half-trained Jedi who might be learned enough in the Jedi arts to try and kill him.

If he was activated as a sleeper agent. If he was a sleeper agent planted by the Jedi. 

“Papa!” Luke’s struggling startled him, he tossed the saber to the side and untangled Luke. The blond fell out of his cloak with a startled huff. “What was that?” 

“I merely believed that you would not be prepared for an unconventional fight. I was correct.” 

“There are rules to fencing,” Luke told him, pouting stubbornly, “you can take your cloak and make your opponent into a burrito.” 

“I can and will,” Vader didn’t apologize, “you were unprepared, and thus, I have succeeded in winning.” 

“You cheated!” 

“Did I?” 

“Yes! That cloak wasn’t part the arrangement.” 

“There was no arrangement.” 

“There was too! When you pick up a fencing saber, you’re entering in a contract of honor and dignity.” Luke stomped his foot. “You don’t throw cloaks at people!” 

Both surprised at Luke’s outburst, though he realized it was more from embarrassment from losing, and the peculiar phrasing of his words; Vader leaned back and realized what he could do to get Luke’s mind calm enough to examine it. 

“A sparring practice is not enough reason to tantrum, son,” Vader scolded. True to Luke’s previous actions, he flared up. 

“I am not trantruming!” He shouted, “I am perfectly calm!” 

“I see,” Vader mused as Luke grew steadily more red in the face. It wasn’t technically good parenting to bait your child, but Vader’s suspicion that Luke might be a Jedi plant was too bothersome to ignore. 

It backfired spectacularly. Instead of Luke retreating into a sulky shell and stomping away. Halfway through a completely inane argument over the mechanics of flying in a hurricane, Luke burst into furious tears and sat down heavily and proceeded to cry. 

The flying lesson, which had quickly followed the stunning fencing lesson (Luke was better than most of his inquisitors) had been peppered with snide comments from both of them. Truly a waste of time, and energy. Something that hadn’t been able to stop the Sith was sensing that his son's breaking point was close. He expected something violent, an outburst he could scold or punish. 

Luke plopping onto the durasteel floor in the hangar bay and sobbing was totally unexpected. 

Vader didn’t know what to do. When he did take a step forward, Luke scrambled up and bolted from the hanger. 

Actually, he did know how to handle it. When he came back to his senses and beat down his surprise, he remembered how he’d handled Dhara’s outburst. 

When he went to Luke’s room, ignoring the heavy and disapproving glare of his butler, Vader set the plate of pastries and the tall glass of milk just outside his sons hiding spot. From beneath the bed, he could hear muffled crying and hiccupping. No doubt from the strength of Luke’s sobbing. 

“Son,” he waited until there was a brief, shuddering breath. 

“Go away!” The watery edge in his voice was impossible to miss. Vader carefully sat beside the bed and waited.

“Luke.” 

“You’re mean and horrible! All I wanted to do was to have a good day! Just one good day and have some fun! You had to ruin it!” Luke’s crying worsened, and Vader felt genuine concern for his breathing ability. He wasn’t sure how he’d drag Luke out from under his bed if he began to choke. For a while, there was nothing but crying. Occasionally it worsened, and sometimes it seemed as if Luke had fallen asleep. Still, Luke’s hand eventually appeared and snagged one of the pastries and disappeared back under the bed.

“Luke,” Vader shifted, “please come out.” 

“No.” 

“We can discuss this.”

“I tried to talk to you today,” Luke muttered, “you were a jerk.”

“I know.” 

“Why?” 

“I was foolish and unkind. I have no excuse.” He waited, during which another pastry was pulled under the bed. 

“You…” Luke emerged slowly from beneath the bed. Vader found private amusement at how it looked. It must has looked even odder, for Vader to be waiting so patiently for him to climb out. When Luke had fully emerged, Vader took stock of how he looked. Blond hair stuck every which way, tear tracks ran down his face which was red and puffy, and his expression was so woebegone, that Vader reached out. Luke leaned away, sniffling. “I could have waited there for a could of days.” 

“I believe you.” 

“I didn’t have to come out.” 

“I understand.” 

“I did it because I can’t reach the milk under the bed.” Luke grabbed the glass and gulped down half of its contents before setting it back down. 

“Of course.” 

Vader waited quietly, and eventually Luke stopped fiddling with his hands long enough to look up. “You know when someone is…you know how someone feels right?” 

“Yes.” 

“And, um, you know how to tell what mom is feeling pretty easily, right?” 

“I have the ability,” Vader said, wondering what Luke had in store for him. “For your mother’s privacy and peace, I do not pry.” 

“But she’d tell you if she hated me, right?” 

The utterly shocking and faintly ridiculous turn in the conversation, made Vader turn sharply at his son. Luke’s eyes were leaking again, and he was desperate with worry. It was, the Sith realized, a perfectly serious question. 

“Luke.” 

“Because I know she’d got mixed feelings about me. Like, she doesn’t know if she can even handle being a mom, and I’ve been trying to make it easy but, she ran away. I know like going on a mercy mission doesn’t seem like running away, but she was. I could tell. She hardly even looked at my when she left. I didn’t; she didn’t want to say bye. I have to see a head shrink because I’m so much of a mess that I can’t even hear people drop heavy things without getting a reaction. I can’t even listen to you two disagree without worrying you’re going to get a divorce. I want her to want me, to like me. Then I got into that fight.” Luke fell silent, as his eyes welled with tears again and he had to bite his lip to keep from crying some more. 

Vader stared at Luke, so distressed and miserable, and vowed that the moment that Jifus touched back down, they would be having a lengthy conversation on healthy parenting.

“Luke.” 

“Kids my age never get adopted,” Luke muttered past his tears, “never. No one wants trouble kids.” He didn’t look up at Vader, who was privately amazed that Luke hadn’t cried himself dry yet. “I can’t even sleep anymore. I just get these nightmares. Again and again, they come back every night, and I can’t keep them out. I can’t sleep, I’m so afraid to sleep now. I’m afraid to close my eyes some nights. I just, we don’t spend enough time together as a family. I’m with you or mom, never both. I don’t get to do stuff with you two. I wanted to make special today, but then that guy had to ruin it! I wanted to be,” Luke buried his head in his hands, shoulders shaking. 

At his wit's end, Vader reached out to Luke and pulled him bodily into his lap. It wasn’t a graceful or gentle motion, Luke’s flailing leg knocked over the half-empty glass of milk. The blue liquid spilled into the carpet, soaking it. It went ignored. 

Luke’s teary blue eyes were wide with shock as he stared at the blank mask. 

“Papa?” 

It was easier to use to the force to pull a blanket off the bed than to move and untangle his cape. He wrapped the blanket around Luke’s shoulders. When Vader felt capable of speech again, he gently pushed back Luke’s lengthening bangs and spoke. 

“With absolute certainty as a force user, your father, and Jifus’s husband I can tell you that your mother loves you.” 

“I.” 

“It is true; she may not display it well.” 

“She’s had a hard life,” Luke muttered, shrugging the blanket closer to himself. 

“Luke,” Vader did not want Luke dissolving into another speech in which he sounded too much like an adult. “Your mother is a grown woman, a war veteran, and experienced in many other things. You,” Vader tapped Luke’s nose with a single finger. He wrinkled his nose at Vader. “are fully entitled to hold her to a higher standard.” 

“But she’s mom. She’s got so much to do, and I don’t.” 

“You are a thirteen-year-old,” Vader interrupted his son, “and she is your mother. You may, and should, expect her to do well and hold her to a higher standard.” 

“I can’t yell at mom.’ 

“You yelled at me today.” 

“I?” He looked away, “I’m sorry.” 

“Do not be,” Vader said, “you were correct.” 

“Really?” The ex-thief seemed confused, but he seemed to be calming down; leaning against Vader further as he listened. 

“In your argument, you challenged me to hold myself to a better ideal. To not do what I have done in the past for the sake of ease and fearful intimidation.”

“I guess.” 

“It was a reasonable argument, and to not expect children to challenge their parents at any point is ludicrous. You,” Vader gestured to the room for emphasis, “cannot be expected to behave as a perfect child. You are allowed to misbehave, to back talk, and to be sulky and complain. You are a child; it is not an unreasonable assumption that you will eventually misbehave.”

“Trouble kids don’t get families.” 

“They need and deserve them.” Vader pushed away from the image of Ahsoka. She’d been a trouble Padawan. One that no one had wanted. “When you agreed to be adopted,” the Sith paused and tightened his grip as Luke’s eyes began to brim over. “You told us that you would not stand to be a doll or a decoration. Correct?” 

“Um, yeah?” Against all the odds and expectations, Luke leaned against his chest even as he was still half-curled in the blanket. 

“Why would you do such a thing to yourself?”

“I wasn’t,” Luke paused, “I wasn’t really. I just wanted to be easy to live with. I mean, when I said yes…I thought it would be easy! So much easier then it turned out to be, I thought it would just fit together perfectly, and I’d be okay forever and that I wouldn’t.” He bit his lip. “I didn’t want to pretend. I wanted to be me, and I guess that being me is so much harder than I thought it would be.” 

“It is never as easy as it seems,” Vader told him, “to assume so it either foolishness or arrogance.”

“I guess.”

“Your mistakes will happen. Jifus will also make mistakes. I will, as you saw today. I was far more unkind than any situation warranted.” Luke nodded slowly, agreeing. 

He had gotten information from Luke. Not the information he was looking for, but information nonetheless. 

“As for not spending enough time together, as we should, I will discuss it with your mother when she returns.” 

“What could we do?” 

“I am unsure,” with his son now nearing clam,” Vader raised a hand to his sons back and patted gently. To his shock, it prompted the teenager to leaned against him even more. “Furthermore, your mother and I are not going to get a divorce.” 

“It’s a real concern,” Luke said, muffled by the armor and his blanket which he had pulled over his head. 

“It is.”

“You aren’t even in love. You don’t love each other.” 

“Sometimes,” he said with such deep tones of unhappiness that Luke looked up, “even love does not hold a marriage together.” 

“Papa. I.” 

“Jifus and I respect each other greatly. We have shared life experience. It is not unusual, even for a marriage that is mostly for political and monetary reasons, to last.” 

“I know. I just wish you guys were in love.” Vader added his own private agreement to Luke’s mutterings. “Are you happy? I mean? Even a little?” 

“Are you?” 

Luke remained silent and eventually sighed. “I think so.”

At least he didn’t sound as if he was going to choke on his own tears anymore. He adjusted his blanket, seemingly unashamed of how closely he was holding his father. Which cheered Vader, considering how reluctant Luke had been to get close to him before. He’d had little trouble getting close to Jifus. Granted, she was not encased in a metal life-support suit and was generally more agreeable. Still, the fact that Luke now felt comfortable around him to be here. To tell him all that bothered him. 

“I am content as well,” Vader replied. “Far better than I have any right to be. “

“But what about you and Mom? Why is she leaving? I know she wanted to go help, but I know there is more. I can tell.” 

“You are far more preceptive than most would give you credit for.” His breathing cycled a few times before he continued. “The failure to cure her patient is more bothersome than it was in the beginning. It is a disease that only she had the most familiarity with. While studying it the first time, every one of her friends and co-workers were killed in the crossfires of the war.”

“Oh,” Luke’s voice was so small, that the only reason Vader heard it was because of his suit enhancements.

“Furthermore, we have some disagreements. The nature of which I will not inform you. Though certainly, she might have been better when she left, it is not unreasonable for her to need a chance to meditate and regather her thoughts.” 

“In a disaster area?” 

“If it works for her.” 

Luke was silent for a while, Vader reached down and brushed a hand over his forehead. “You are much and truly aggrieved by our actions and inactions.”

“You’re not really bad parents. It’s just that we’re all so…hurt, and different and guarded and then that doesn’t. I guess it doesn’t make it easy to have a family like that.” 

“It does not.”

“I don’t,” Luke’s suddenly shy voice alarmed Vader, “I don’t know about me, Papa. I’m so…scared. I’m so messed up.” 

“There is no shame in seeing a therapist,” Vader tilted Luke’s head up gently, “you have been hurt and scared and suffer trauma from your past. There is no shame in asking for help. There is nothing that should shame you about seeing help.” 

“But I want to be normal! I want to be a normal kid! I want to have school friends! I want to see dumb movies with friends! I don’t want to be some,” his lip wobbled again as tears threatened. “I want to be normal! I don’t want to have nightmares about that man! I don’t want to flinch every time there is noise too loud! I don’t want to be afraid all the time! Papa! I still have a bug-out bag under my bed! I still prepare for everything to go wrong! I’m not!” Tears spilled over, and Luke buried his head into his shoulder. “I don’t like feeling like this! I don’t like being a freak! I can’t feel normal! I just. I stand there with everyone else, and I know that I’m not like them!” The overwhelming amount of distress was something Vader had never been expected to help with. He felt Luke’s force signature flare, rising and searching for anything. Desperate for attention, desperate for help. 

Luke, despite living with them and spending time with them, was alone. So achingly alone and miserable. Consumed by his lies, his second life, his hidden story that he couldn’t tell. It was hurting the teenager, pulling him into pieces. 

Vader hesitantly reached out with the force. He encountered Luke’s wildly flaring presence and made his own presence known. He latched onto it with agonizing desperation. Just as Ahsoka had done years ago, he all but buried himself into Vader’s presence. 

Luke’s light burned. Still, Vader gritted his teeth and continued to hold Luke until his presence was familiar enough that it faded into the background. He cradled Luke in every ever sense of the word and wondered how he had ever thought he would try and use Luke. How had he ever considered taking him to manipulate? How had he even considered that Luke might be a Jedi plant? 

He was too emotional. Luke cared, and he hated. His temper was obvious to anyone looking. He wanted to help, and he burned with passion. 

No Jedi would have ever dared to train Luke. 

Luke eventually did calm down, partly because he was almost too exhausted to be upset further, and partly because Vader had used to force to soothe him. The same way he had for the infants in the temple creche. 

“Son,” what Luke was calm enough to understand him, his breath coming out in shuddering gasps and his eyes were red and painful. He didn’t even know what to say. “You are a unique child, so differing from your peers and neighbors.” 

“I.” 

“This is not a bad thing. You are bright, intelligent, kind, and just. You are not a freak. You are not a mistake or trouble, or a waste of time. Keeping the bug-out bag beneath your bed is a valid reaction to the life you have lived. Reacting to certain noises with fear is something even your mother suffers from. If you are afraid, it is my duty as your father to ensure that you are not. If you trust us enough, come to us. If you do not, then you still have your meetings with Dr. Hayden to discuss things with.”

“I.” Luke swallowed heavily and shrugged. “I just.” He leaned into Vader’s hand, his own slight hand coming up to hold Vader’s wrist. “Will I ever be okay?”

“I cannot answer that, Luke,” Vader said as he marveled at the question. “What I can answer, with absolute certainty, is that we will be here to assist you in any way you need. Perfection may be beyond our family, Luke, but we will strive for it.” 

#$#$#$

Niles spent several hours fluttering and nervous. He had heard the arguments between Lord Vader and Prince Luke. He’d seen the child flee the hangar, crying. There was so many ways it could go, and when Vader followed Luke into his room. 

Niles realized that he’d been polishing the same goblet for several minutes and set it down. 

“Niles!” Deno rushed into the kitchen. “Niles! I just saw Lord Vader leave Luke’s room. He went toward his office!” 

“Is everything alright? Did you go check on Luke?” 

“Of course I didn’t go check on Luke!” Deno threw his hands up. “I am a twi’lek! You know what Lord Vader would do if he saw me in his son's room! You’d be cleaning my blood off the walls.” 

“Deno,” Niles said irritably, “you know Lord Vader doesn’t subscribe to such manners. His curiosity would be why a cook was checking on his son. I will go.” Niles tossed the polishing set onto the counter and made his way to Luke’s room as quickly as was polite. 

Luke was there, looking unharmed. His slight form was buried beneath several blankets. The plate of pastries that Vader had summoned was almost empty, only crumbs and crusts remained; and the glass of milk was empty. A towel had been set on the carpet and Niles could guess that some of it had gotten spilled. 

“Luke?” 

The figure stirred, and Luke sat up slowly. “Yeah?”

“Are you feeling well?” 

“I’m fine.” Niles could hear the lie in the weak voice and the red eyes that stared at him. Prince Luke must have cried buckets. “Can you?” He wavered, and Niles waited hopefully for Luke to ask him for something. He seemed so reluctant to do so in the past. “Can you get me a glass of water?” 

“Certainly,” Niles retreated, “do you need anything else?” 

“Um, some painkillers? I have a headache.” 

“I will be right back,” Niles promised. When he’d brought the water and painkillers, he got a closer look. He didn’t seem to have trouble sitting up or moving, at most the problem was with Luke having cried too much. There weren’t any signs of injury or abuse, which Niles knew how to identify too easily after such a long career. “Are you alright?” 

“I guess,” Luke drank down his pills and shuddered. “My day just didn’t go the way that I’d expected, that’s all.” 

“Did you at least have fun at the market?” 

“Yeah, until an officer tried to arrest me for existing too much. Then everything went downhill.” 

“Ah.” 

“Then Papa wanted to kill him, which wasn’t great.”

“Oh!”

“Then we got back and argued and then,” Luke shrugged, “the rest is history I guess.” 

“But you're alright?” 

“Not really,” the blond set his glass on the bedside table, “maybe one day, but not right now. If you’ll excuse me. I’m not feeling well, so I’m going to bed a little early today.” 

“Of course,” Niles stood and cleared out the dirty dishes. 

“Don’t worry about the milk,” Luke muttered from beneath the piles of blankets. “I’ll clean it up in the morning.”


	32. Jedha

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jehda is a war zone. Lord Protector Piett gets an invitation.

Jedha was a war-zone, complete with checkpoints and roving Imperial patrols that made the locals hate them even more than before. With the whole city under lock-down and under heavy guard; the tense atmosphere made the ISB agent twitchy and nervous. 

For her sake and the sake of the city, she left her blasters and weapons on the ship. If anything happened, she didn’t want to responsible for the city exploding into open revolt. Hell, if she even looked at someone wrong, a fight might start. Imperial agents roaming the city alone were just asking for trouble. 

“Okay,” she tugged her poncho to try and cover her uniform better. It didn’t really work, but at least she didn’t look so painfully Imperial. For a moment she watched the crowds of people rushing past the Imperial held spaceport; and wondered if she was going too far for just one child. 

One child could make the difference though. It was her duty as one able and knowledgeable to find the missing child. 

Agent Banaka nervously adjusted her poncho and scrambled onto the streets, headed down to the old temple that had once housed the famous Guardians of the Whills. The officer at the checkpoint gave her a curious glance when he checked her identity and waved her through. Here she paused, just within the courtyard of the temple and stared up at the enormous stone spires that stretched into the bright blue sky. 

A monument to the Force, beautiful and ancient, and crafted with power beyond her imagination. She jerked as the rattling of power tools intruded her thoughts. Just a few meters away, a work crew was cutting a section of the courtyard out. Why she couldn’t even begin to guess and figured it was best that she didn’t know. Still, she was on a mission, and she dug into her pack and set up her camera drones. 

No piece of information was too small. Any bit of history that the temple still had was going to be useful. 

“Agent!” Banaka turned just as she switched on the third droid, to see a portly officer waddling over to her. “Agent!” 

“Sir,” she straightened and nodded, “what can I help you with?” 

“Or what can I help you with!” Watery blue eyes focused on her, “it's not often we get an ISB agent here. I assure you that we are on schedule for the gutting of the temple. Almost all the kyber crystals have been excavated.” 

“Of course,” Banaka agreed, hardly understanding what he was talking about, “are there any kyber crystals left?” 

“Only a few,” he assured her, “very few. Our work crews have been working round the clock. This whole planet will be strip-mined within a few years!” 

“I’m going to need to see some of them, as well as the center of the Temple,” she opened her datapad and began the programs necessary to get the droids up in the air and moving, “how long can you keep these men from working? I’m going to need quiet if I can record.” 

“As long as necessary, agent. If I may ask, why would you record this place?”

“There is a mission,” Banaka lied as the droids buzzed to life and hovered around her. “I cannot say any more. Please, officer, send out a message to make the crews stop for the rest of the day. I know this will interfere with your quota, but I will leave an explanation at the bottom of your report.” 

“Of course,” the man didn’t seem to be bothered by her request, which was weird. Banaka made her life off of noticing details, but her curiosity got the better of her, and she began to set the droids into place. Every detail would be recorded, the walls, the floor, the ceilings, every engraving, and etching ever made. Anything left in the temple needed to be examined and studied. 

First, she made a loop around the inner courtyard walls, checking for details. It took her an hour to get inside, where most of the temple seemed to have been converted into the Imperial headquarters. There was stormtrooper gear, spare parts, cots, spare tools. Anything that might have been part of the temple originally looked to have been stripped out already. She made a note to check the black market for items that might have been dumped onto it. 

For a while, her droids were quiet, none of the beeping with an alarm until they reached the entrance of the mining tunnels. 

For a while, she paused at the entrance of the tunnel, abandoned except for the stormtroopers stationed every few feet. She stared at the rails meant to convey supplies and crystals, and eventually sighed and went down.

The crystal chambers nearly made her faint. They were enormous, stretching back for miles and in every direction. So many walls were already stripped bare. In the central chamber were over a hundred people hunched there. Chained together and guarded by trigger-happy troopers and overseers.

Slaves. 

Banaka swallowed as her entrance caught the attention of a few of them. They stared at her, human, twi’lek, Wookie, rodian, and mon cal; with dead expressions and empty eyes. Her heart seemed to squeeze painfully, and she bit her lip. 

She forced herself to look away and continued into the mine until she came across an area with bright green and white and blue crystals. 

When Banaka left, after hours of exploring the Temples and finding nothing, she set off the detector set outside the doors. The officer stared at her. 

“We have some people try to steal crystals,” he said and gestured to troopers to frisk her. 

“I didn’t take anything but videos,” Banaka told him and checked the bottom of her shoes. A small crystal was wedged between the rubber teeth when she pried it out and handed it over; he seemed annoyed. 

“Even a little dust sets off these stupid sensors,” he complained, “okay, since you’re clear, just get on through. Oh, and thanks for giving us the day off. Supervising those animals takes a lot out of you.”

“I bet,” Banaka pulled her hood over her head, “do you know what happened to the people who used to live in the temple? The Guardians?” 

“Them, they were dealt with.” The officer smirked, “I’d be surprised if there are any left.” 

“Right,” the uncomfortable feeling her stomach didn’t abate. “But if there were; where would I find them?” 

“Begging for scraps,” the man scoffed, “dead in a ditch.” 

“That answers my question,” Banaka lied and left the temple proper and hurried back onto the streets.   
People avoiding her wasn’t surprising. Dozens of people giving her the stink eye but not daring to pick a fight; didn’t surprise her either. She wasn’t sure how to ask around to see if there were any guardians in hiding.

Asking those sorts of questions would end up with her down a ditch. It was already dangerous to be looking after Jedi artifacts. No one would tell and Imp agent where the remaining member of a not-so-Jedi sect would be. 

What brought her to a sudden halt wasn’t that realization. Rather, it was the walking stick that suddenly appeared inches in front of her torso. It didn’t have to, she knew, the owner was being polite by not knocking her silly. 

“Ah,” she stared down at it and then at the person holding it. 

“You are a curiosity,” the man said, his accented voice devoid of any threat. Still, she got the feeling he could kill her easily if he wanted to. He was tall, in black and red robes and beaten up armor. Milky white eyes stared in Banaka’s direction. 

“Thank you?” 

“There is a kyber crystal in your pocket.” She didn’t answer and gulped as the barrel of a much larger weapon was set against the small over her back. 

“Is there?” A deeper voice growled, belonging to a stranger who loomed behind her. 

“Yes,” slowly, so as to not entice either stranger to kill her, she drew the bright green crystal from her pocket.

“You were in the temple,” the man with the stick said, his attention seemed to be on the crystal in her hand. “What were you doing there?” 

“I could be an Imperial agent looking for the remaining Guardians of the Whills,” Banaka pointed out, “this could be a trap.” 

“It could be,” the first man said agreeably, as the second growled under his breath. “It isn’t; you are here for something else. Why would you be looking for the Guardians of the Whills?” 

“I’m looking for a boy,” Banaka said, the man behind her finally moved into view. He was tall, in heavy armor and carried a weapon that was outlawed in most star systems. “It’s a missing person case; it’s lead me to Jedha.” 

“Why Jedha?” 

“It would take a while to explain,” Banaka swallowed despite her dry mouth. “I’m on Jedha looking for reasons why the boy's uncle was…here. I think he was here; I’m not even sure. I think they’re from here. It’s the closest I was able to get. A sandy place, moisture farms, mystery people, an occupying force.” 

“There are no moisture farms on Jedha anymore. They were destroyed to create a dependence on imported water.” 

“Okay,” Banaka stared at the two, “can I put my hands down?” 

“Yes,” the staff-wielding man moved back, and Banaka took a deep breath. “You are not here on assignment are you?” 

“No,” she admitted, “I’m running a case outside the books. It’s a missing person case that’s about three years old. I know it’s a long-shot, but I have reason to suspect someone on Jedha would be able to help. Guardians of the Whills; if there are any alive I need to speak with them.” 

“The Empire killed the guardians,” the second man told her gruffly. Banaka wished she’d thought this through. 

“I know.” 

“We will help you.” Banaka and the second man turned to face the first. “Her intentions are pure. What is your name?” 

“I?” She looked around to find the alley deserted, “I am Banaka. I’m part of the Violent Crimes unit on Corellia. Who are you?” 

“We are the last Guardians of the Whills; I am Chirrut, that is Baze.” Chirrut smiled affably at her, “you are good at finding things?” 

“Usually,” Banaka stared at the two, “you can help me?” 

“Yes, over lunch. You are buying.” 

“Oh, right. Um, of course I am.” She followed the tall man and glanced back at the second just in time to see Baze sigh deeply. Twenty minutes later she was staring at a confusing mix of food in a bowl, wondering if she should just spare herself the trouble and shoot herself. She glanced at the two guardians. “So” she grimaced as Chirrut at the food with every sign of enjoyment. 

“Why do you need dead men to find a missing boy?” 

“His name is Luke, his uncle Ben is looking for him. He went missing about three years ago. His Aunt and Uncle who raised him are Owen and Beru Lars. I didn’t find them on the Jedha records, but I know they can be spotty.” 

“I know of no Larses on Jedha,” Chirrut said instantly, “though I do not know every family.” 

“They’re moisture farmers.” Banaka handed her plate to Baze who also grimaced. “Ben was one too, or so he said. I think he’s lying. But, one of the troubles I’m having, is that he talks about the kid as if he’s a…. tool, or a possetion. It was fine at first, and then it got creepy. It almost seems like he was trying to groom the kid for something. What’s worse, if that I found this under his bed.” Banaka pulled her datapad out and then her sketchbook (an expensive present from her mother) and passed them to Baze. His eyebrows shot up as he took in the sketches. 

“What is it?” Chirrut asked, perking up as the rustle of paper. 

“A lightsaber,” Baze said slowly, he glowered at Banaka, “where did you see this?” 

“I just told you, under the bed of the man Ben.”

“There is also,” Baze considered the sketches, “a Padawan braid, a holo-cube, and book cover, and some goggles. A sketch of this man named Ben?” 

“Yeah, he kidnapped Luke from his legal guardians for whatever reason. I know he wanted to train the kid, and he wanted to keep him safe, but then Luke went missing on another planet. I think that Luke was trying to get home. That he was trying to get back to his guardians, hopefully he did and if he didn’t then I need to find them anyway. 

“This Ben is a Jedi,” Chirrut announced and Banaka wilted. 

“I was afraid of that.” Jedi were dangerous. 

“And that child is his chosen Padawan.” 

“What the hell is a Padawan?” 

“A student of the Jedi,” Baze said slowly, “we Guardians did not have this, but the Jedi did. One teacher would take one student; and raise them and train them. The braid in this picture, must have come from Ben’s previous student or Ben himself. He wouldn’t have kept it without reason. The book is the Jedi Code, and it is meant to be a guide to teach students. That he took the child from his guardians is not unusual for a Jedi. You would call it a kidnapping, he could call it an acquisition.” 

“Why is this normal?”

“The Jedi,” Chirrut said, “were legally allowed to take children from their families and train them. It was for force sensitive children, those who would be strong Jedi. It was not uncommon two decades ago.” 

“So a Jedi takes a kid to train as a Jedi? Being a Jedi now is a death sentence. What does he want with a kid that, if he does train, will have the whole inquisition staff and Black 1 on his head in seconds?”

“To defeat the Sith most likely,” Chirrut didn’t seem concerned.

“So Ben is a Jedi and he’s looking for his Padawan.” Banaka considered the problem, “except you don’t think they were on Jedha. Okay, let me run this past you. A dusty, sandy planet with too much sun, moisture farmers, gangster and scum running around, possibly binary star system.” 

“That would be Tatooine,” Chirrut told her, Baze groaned and shook his head. 

“Tatooine? There’s nothing out there. What about Jakku?”

“Do you trust you?” The blind man jabbed her torso, “or me?” 

“You are pretty mystic, but I’m not a fan of mumbo jumbo.” 

“Trust him,” Baze told her, “according to some of the most ancient texts, there was once a temple on Tatooine. An ancient temple, an ancient people who used the force.”

“Right, Tatooine. There is an Imperial outpost out there with records. If the Larses are citizens, they should be there. If not, I think I can find them.” Banaka moved to stand, except that Chirrut had a death grip on her arm. His sightless eyes focused on her face. “What?” 

“What will you do with this Jedi?” 

“I’m not even thinking about that,” Banaka told him, “my concern is the kid. If he’s even still alive.”

“Then what will you do with the Jedi?”

“I don’t know. He’s a, he’s a drunk. He does nothing but mope around and drink. I don’t think he could hurt anyone anymore.” 

“Then we require payment for our information.” 

“Ah,” Banaka stared and sighed, “I bought you lunch.”

“And?” She glanced back at Baze, who didn’t seem to care about the shakedown. “The crystal in your pocket.” 

“How?” Involuntarily, her hand went to her pocket and she pulled out the pebble sized crystal. “Did you know it was there?” The man gave her an infuriating smug smile and held out his hand. She passed it over and stared at Baze, who shrugged. “Alright, thank you, guardians.” Without another word, she extracted herself from the hut as quickly as possible. 

“How do you know she will not sell us to her commanders?” Baze asked his partner. Chirrut held the crystal before his milky eyes and hummed. 

“The Force is with her.” 

“Chirrut, that is not an answer.” 

“It’s close to one,” Chirrut turned his head as he was following the Imperial’s progress outside the building. “That is why I said we should help her.” 

“Do not tell me that the Force is moving again.”

“I am one with the Force, the Force is with me,” Chirrut handed him the crystal. “We will guard this, Baze Malbus.” Baze glowered at his partner and wished that the man wouldn’t be so cryptic all the time. 

#$#$#$#

The back rooms of Zuden’s grand palace were bustling with activity. Since Ezra was out on an inspection tour of the grounds of the University; Gohan was running a head with her plan at full steam. Coordinated tips offered to the Axillian Home Fleet meant that pirates were being boarded and blown up. Privateers, hired discreetly by Gohan, began to board and disrupt the ever-famous slave trading routes that Imperial ignored because of bribe money. There were spice colonies to destroy, and criminal to break out of prison. 

Her united conglomerate had, under the nose of the Hutts and the Empire, united the Outer Rim. The strength of the freed slaves, the money and power of the Naboo Court, and the weaponry of every semi-honorable criminal. With the Imperials casting a blind eye on the outer rim, assured by the Naboo queen, it was their chance to finally unseat the Hutt’s from power. 

“Gohan!” One of the tall men who usually worked wet-work and now functioned as an ambassador, rushed from around the corner and held up a bright gold envelope. “What do you think of this letter?” 

Gohan turned from her holo-table and read through the letter. It invited the hutt backed governors, imperial back governors, and anyone important enough in a several million-light year radius to a party to be offered in Ezra’s honor. It was a grand ball and the locals were pretty excited to be hosting something so amazing. To pacify any bitter feelings among the populace, Gohan and Ezra had promised to host a ball for everyone else once the first one, for schmoozing and intel-gathering, was over. 

“This is a good letter, who did you decide to be on the invite list that isn’t scum?” 

“A few people,” seeing a renowned assassin working his way through a guest list was hilarious, and Gohan promised herself to make this fit into an episode of Love Against Intelligence. “High Lord Protector Piett has to come, thought there’s no telling how she’ll react to see so many criminals in one place. Erm, we’re also inviting Tarkin, don’t expect him to show up. I’d like to invite the Naboo, but I know that’ll be a mess.” 

“No, only criminals and why are we inviting Piett?” 

“She has an iron hold on one of the only fleets in the galaxy outside Imperial hold. If she wanted to, and was motivated enough, she could hold her planet as independent. Except her daughter just married Lord Vader.” 

“Yes.” Gohan didn’t want Vader involved at all. There was no telling the massacre that would follow if he knew that the richest criminals on the outer rim were going to the same party. “Hopefully she doesn’t raise any uncomfortable questions. Tarkin limits her authority, make sure you write the letter for Tarkin that indicates he can send a lackey. They’ll serve as a visual reminder for the woman to not rock the boat.” 

“Right,” the man made a note on his padd, “do you want to invite Thrawn?” 

“Thrawn?” Gohan looked up from the guest list, marking off Governor Tua as she did so. “Why would we invite Thrawn?”

“He’s a powerful imp.” 

“He’s a dangerous imp,” Gohan said, “no to him. Also, people need to bring presents. Do you have any more questions?” 

“Nope!” The human winked, “maybe after I retire I can go into party planning, this is more fun than strangling people. Oh,” his gaze focused on her screen, “is that fanfic?” 

“What? Oh, that, yeah. It is, for Love Against Intelligence.” Luke had opened an account and posted a little ficlet that Gohan thought was pretty good. No one had commented on it yet, which was a shame, through the views were through the roof. 

“That is such a dumb show. I love it. Like, the first two seasons are just terrible, but they’ve really stepped up their game in the last few weeks. I mean, they’ve got more characters and now they’ve got development. It’s getting so much better. Like, the little kid? He is so cute! Just adorable!” Gohan grinned. “I write fanfic for it too, but I’ve never posted it. I’m a little too nervous, I’m not such a good writer.” 

“You did fine with this,” Gohan held up the letter, “you can write fanfic too. I haven’t yet, I haven’t had the time.” Her fanfic was the show itself. She wondered if it would piss Luke off if she made his ficlet into an episode. “Okay, go. It’s not that I don’t like talking fanfiction, but I have Hutts to lure into a self-destructive trap, Imperials to bamboozle, criminals to hire, and I have to plan on how to woo a girl whose part of a matching set. I’m swamped.” 

“Right,” the man gave a sloppy salute and wondered off. Gohan shook her head and turned around to the second person who had been standing there. “Tech, what are we looking at?” 

“Bugs and listening devices are in place, boss,” the twi’lek shook her head, “we’re keeping the command center in an orbital shuttle to keep people from accidently finding us. We’re ready to eavesdrop on every conversation and whisper at the party. A ghost won’t be able to sneeze without us seeing and hearing it.” 

“Excellent.” 

“And we’ve got the lighting in place. You want drama? You’re getting drama! Think opera! Think big!” 

“That exactly what we want, drama and big! Excellent job on staying underbudget.” Gohan gave her a thumbs up and stared at the other people who’d assembled to talk over the party plans. “Who has the menu?” A rodian raised their hand. “Excellent, what have we got?” 

$#$#$#

Gozus Piett, High Lord Protector of Axilla, stared down at the shiny letter in her hand and then at her council. “Since when,” she said slowly, “did Zuden have a king?” The ten men and woman stared at her. Confusion and indifference raged across their faces. Her own son seemed bewildered. “Does anyone have an explanation as to why I am being invited to a party hosted by,” she checked the letter, “King Dylen of Zuden? Who is King Dylen? Last anyone paid attention to Zuden was when it was bought by some Moff who wanted to make his daughter a princess.” 

“Erm,” she focused her single eyes on the unfortunate person who’d cleared his throat. “Well, apparently it passed into the possession of someone else about five years ago. We’re not sure who, but, um…that’s all we’ve got. When we went back to double check, the record were sealed.” 

“Oh great, so you’re telling me there is a conspiracy brewing?” 

“What makes you think it’s a conspiracy?” 

“Everything is a conspiracy until proven otherwise,” Gozus grunted, leaning back into her chair. “This is ridiculous. I haven’t been invited to a coronation celebration in decades. Apparently, we also need a present. I want information on this situation. Who has taken over Zuden with enough money and authority to host one of these parties?” There was a muttered assent and her council disbanded as quickly as possible. There were more interesting things going on that didn’t mean they had to sit around and be yelled at by their commander. 

Once the room was empty, Firmus inched back into the room, a faint frown on his face. 

“Do you think something is wrong, Mother?” 

“Too many coincidences,” Gozus sat down heavily. She stared at her son, “too many conveniently timed tips coming in over the hotline. Too many ships being taken out. There is something going on and this is just another billboard advertising a show I don’t even know is coming.” 

“I thought arresting slavers and pirates was our duty. You don’t believe that this king could be attempting to antagonize us?” Firmus stopped at the end of the table. 

“No, there is something going on. I will go to this party, you stay behind and keep everything running smoothly. I just,” Gozus sighed, “ever since Jabba the Hutt died, something fishy has been going on on the outer rim. I think this, whatever is happening, is reaching out to Axilla.” 

“Our fleet would be helpful to whoever wants to sway our opinion,” Firmus nodded, “this may be a trap.” 

“It could be,” she agreed, “I doubt it. Like I said, they are reaching out to us finally. I need to go. I don’t think I would have been invited if it was for a reason.” 

 

“Probably not,” her son took a seat and sighed, “have you spoken to Jifus?” 

 

“Not recently, I do know that she’d on a mission right now. Your father won’t tell me where.” 

“Have you met her son?” 

“No,” the aged commander sighed, “you know, she’s just like your father. Ah, yes, I’m getting married. Oh, I didn’t tell you? This is my way of telling you. It’s ridiculous.” 

“Mother,” Firmus tapped a nervous hand against the desk, “I’d like your permission to visit Jifus. There is some business that I could make up to go to Imperial Center.” 

“And your going to see how she and her new husband are settling in?” 

“They’ve been married for almost half a year now, Mother. They’ve already adopted a child. I worked with Lord Vader before,” Firmus paused, “It is concerning.” 

“We have a fantastic conversation at their wedding,” Gozus sighed, “when you go, you need to take presents to their son. No wedding presents though.” 

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Firmus told her, “anyway, what is his name?” 

“Luke, I think. There have been no official reports or anything. They didn’t even release his name. I had to use my contacts on the Imperial Center.” 

“I’ll talk to Jifus about her annoying habit,” Firmus promised. “Now, about this party.” 

#$#$##$#

His father had kept an annoying close eye on him since his impromptu meltdown. He now joined Luke for meal times in the morning and evening. He offered to help with his physics homework, something Luke was glad to take him up on, and then joined Luke when he was relaxing. Unsure he could stomach the sight of Darth Vader watching a documentary about the plant like on Florrum. Or if he could stand to see an episode turn racy right with his father there, Luke kept to his datapad and wrote fanfiction.

“When is mom coming back?” Luke could only handle so many fanfics that centered around how cute he and his father’s fake relationship was going. He hopped off the couch and went to Vader’s side, leaning against him to get a better loo at his datapad. 

“A few days, her last message was.” Vader fell silent, and Luke stared, waiting. 

“Papa? What’s up?” 

“We will be expecting guests to arrive soon,” the Sith said suddenly. 

“Guests? Who the heck would want to come to our house? You’re a Sith, and I’m a teenager, and mom’s a sleep-deprived surgeon. The only people who would be able to tolerate, plus you and me, is someone like.” 

“Family?” Vader asked, and Luke caught on immediately. 

“Who?” 

“Firmus Piett, your uncle. Make sure your room is clean.” 

“Why? He’s not going to be staying in my room?” 

“Your room is a mess,” Vader told him, “I expect it to be clean before your uncle arrives.”

“You’re going to let him come and stay here?”

“Why wouldn’t I?” 

“You hardly know him.” 

“Perhaps that is why I am agreeing to his visit.” 

“Except that’s not the reason. I’d put good money on the fact that you think Mom is lonely and needs more friends. Since it’s a little hard to make friends in her position, you’re bringing her brother in. Which might be a good thing except that Mom never mentions her family which may be the reason you’re letting him stay. You don’t like many people, I’m not sure that you like me yet, but you must at least appreciate something about this mystery uncle.” He tilted his head to the side as his father turned a speculative gaze on him. “Am I wrong?” 

“You are correct on every measure, son. We will have two days with Jifus before her brother arrives.” 

“And when is mom getting back?” 

“Day days from now,” Vader repeated, as he had several times already. Luke’s impatience burned at the edge of his mind. 

“You think she’ll be okay when she comes back. I mean, she is off to help with a natural disaster.” 

“She will need a recovery period,” Vader agreed, again wondering how his son had ever managed to pretend to be a normal child. It was so obvious to anyone looking that he wasn’t. 

“Okay, are you going to order that super fancy and super expensive caf that she likes?” 

“Her caf habit is already excessive.” 

“So you did buy it,” Luke continued to lean against his shoulder, staring at the blank mask, “come on, did you get it or not?” The Sith moved his arm and opened a drawer in his desk, producing a brown bag that smelled strongly of caf. “Nice.” 

“If you are finished making a nuisance of yourself?” 

“Nope!” 

“Yes, you are. Go.” 

“Do what?”

“Take a nap.” 

“Its six in the evening, we’re about to have dinner.” 

“Time out.” 

“For what? I’m just asking after my poor mother whose off on a dangerous mission. Climbing into the jaws of death and punching through his throat. Goodness me!” With a dramatic sigh, Luke pressed the back of his hand to his forehead. “I am so delicate with such a weak constitution! The only thing I can do is seek comfort with my paternal figure who remains at home. Together,” Luke only just managed to suppress his giggles as he entered the last act, “we shall stand at the window with our kerchief and wave them at the passing ships. Wandering along the walk beside our window and weep for our lonil..AWK!” Luke was cut off as Vader, presumably annoyed with his dramatics, picked him up and had practically swaddled him with the black cloak. 

“Your weak constitution, son, shall be well-cared for. From now on, you shall be faithfully guarded and kept indoors.” 

“Put me down!” Luke squirmed around his father’s arms, trying to slide to the floor. “I regret it already, stop it.” 

“And so carefully concealed from the outside galaxy, to protect your innocence and health.” 

“No! I don’t want to be lock away forever.” Even as he struggled, Luke giggled. Vader carted him back to the abandoned couch and dropped him there. Depositing him on Luke’s datapad and pages and pages of homework. “Stop!” 

“Here, you will be safe.” Wrapped in the folds of the cloak, Luke wasn’t even sure how his father had gotten it off, and around him so quickly, he didn’t see his father pick up his datapad, unhook the back, and slid in another piece of metal that blended seamlessly into the other mechanics. “Now, return to your flower gazing, young son.” 

“No!” Luke popped back up after working himself almost free of the cloak. “I regret everything ever! I will not be some crying baby!” 

“You had confused me,” Vader said with the unaffected tone that portrayed the deepest well of sarcasm. From his spot on the couch, Luke glowered and sulkily retreated into the cloak. A second later he flopped over, sending work materials to the floor and deeper into the couch, his back to the Sith. 

“You’re not getting this back!” Luke announced and Vader smiled at Luke’s antics in the privacy in his mask.


	33. Return

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Luke makes more friends and has several nightmares. Imperial gossip is crazy. Vader and Jifus connect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Readers, this is a long chapter. Potty breaks and snack breaks suggested.

To anyone examining the information regarding King Deylen’s coronation party, it would seem as if it was just the gathering of criminals. Vader could easily identify Hutt lackies, his own bribed officers, corrupt officials, and even more assassins and bounty hunter then would be seen as a weapons convention.

Except his mother-in-law, who had RSVP’d a seat, the entire party seemed to be of criminal nature.

Not even the criminals that Vader could support. Like the charming rogues on Smuggler Moon or Corellia. These were slavers and traffickers.

A guest list like this would have normally prompted him to get his ship and lightsaber ready. He would have been happy to go cut some heads off. Except that the pre-arranged code-name for a non-existent agent was one the list.

The name belonged to an alias that could be interchanged between agents of Vader’s spy ring, and the Queen’s spy network. For the name to be on the list, it means that the Queen wanted no interference at this party. It had to be part of the grander scheme that she had hinted at before. A scheme is so grand that even he, Darth Vader, was only a pawn.

“Papa!” Luke ran into his office, breathless and excited. “I have news!”

“You have finally learned the delicate art of knocking on doors?”

“NO!” Heedless of the heatless reprimand, Luke bounded across his office and slapped a datapad on his desk. Vader shoved his to the side to avoid damage. “Even better!”

“You have discovered that manners exist?”

“Don’t be stupid!” Luke shoved the datapad at him and wiggled it from side to side. The metal edges bounced off his desk in a manner and tempo that was increasingly annoying. Vader seized it before his headache could worsen.

“What is it, Luke?”

“My class is taking a field trip to the new Clone Wars exhibit at the Museum of Modern History! I want to go?”

Vader stared at Luke. “If you wish to attend, then attend.”

“I have to have a parental signature and I there is a 25 credit fee.”

“25 credit fee?” Vader demanded, suddenly annoyed. “Considering the obscene tuition that I pay, including donations, a simple museum trip should be free!”

“Papa!” Luke whined, leaning on the desk and looking up at him through his eyelashes. “Stop being a penny pincher! Just pay the fee and sign! Please!”

“I will not be paying a fee that is more expensive than parking, and entrance tricks cost on a regular day. You will simply have to live without this trip.”

“Oh come on! I’ll pay the fee! I really want to go!”

“No.”

“Come on! I really, really, really want to go! It’s going to be amazing! They have some old battle droids, a starfighter, clone armor. They have some holos of the key players!”

“Why would you want to attend, son? You would not be learning anything of consequence, aside from what the government wants you to know.”

“You’re just being cynical.”

“I am being realistic. I am not paying that ridiculous fee.”

“UUUUGH,” Luke knocked his head against the desk as the Sith watched dispassionately. His days were being taken up by overly dramatic teenagers, conspiracies, and; his desk comm chimed, and he noted a message from Agent Tove, fashion shows. “It’ll be fun.”

“There is nothing involving the Clone War that can be considered fun, my son,” Vader told him. “It is a war that your mother and I are both veterans of. It damaged us both physically and mentally, reducing us from health to empty shells. The result left your mother with several deadly vices and adrift and myself confined to this suit of armor having lost everything that I believed I fought for.” He must have made an impression because Luke sobered instantly.

“I don’t, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to bring it up like that. I want to go because it had just an impact. I want to understand what happened and why. I want to know!”

“Anything that you could ever hope to learn about the war can be learned more from a single conversation with your parents than ten years of scholarly pursuit.”

“But you don’t talk about it,” Luke pointed out. His tone bordered on disrespectful. Vader ignored it.

“We do not.”

“Then why can’t I go to the museum?”

Luke had made several good points, and his argument was fairly sound.

“I will not pay that fee.”

The boy sighed, “the fee is waived if a parent agrees to be one of the chaperons.” Vader and Luke stared at each for a long moment before Vader picked up the datapad and scrawled his signature on the bottom line.

It wasn’t until a suspiciously triumphant Luke left his office, did Vader realize that he had been played.

#$#$3

It wasn’t as if Jifus had been planning on getting kidnapped the same day that she was due to head home. These things, like having her ship waylaid by pirates, happened. Being identified as a target and lucrative ransom victim was also pretty normal. So long as no one tried actually to hurt her. A healthy victim was better.

She picked at the bandage on her arm and let her head fall back against the wall as the make-shift cell shuddered as the ship jumped into hyperspace. At the least, they hadn’t bothered to take her gear and supplies. They might have been pirates and criminals of the lowest order but stealing doctor’s supplies and tools were off-limits to everyone.

The cuffs weren’t a good brand either. They were the sort that was Imperial surplus, and she had escaped from their like before. Since her escape couldn’t be enacted while they were in hyperspace, she’d have to start plotting.

“Hey,” she looked up and watched a human edge into view. “You’re a doctor, right?”

“Yes.”

“Well,” the pirate shrugged his shoulders. “Do you think that you could look at something for me? I’ve been getting these pains and.”

She pushed her spectacles up the bridge of her nose and gestured to the seat beside her.

“Sit down, and I’ll take a look.”

“Thanks!” The Pirates opened the cell door and scurried in. A second later an obviously infected wound was produced, and the man seemed nervous as Jifus sighed.

“That’s infected.” 

“Yeah, can you fix it?”

“Yeah, how long has it been like this?”

“Couple of days.”

“Okay,” Jifus hooked her foot around the strap of her backpack and pulled it closer. “Tell me what happened.”

“Well, I didn’t mean to, but I’ve been having sex with this fantastic lady down on Smugglers Moon.”

#$#$#$#$

The pile of sweets and food that sat on the edge of the table that was declared safe was a worryingly three times less than the pile at the other end, that wasn’t safe to eat.

“So that,” Ezra pointed to the enormous pile of sweets, “will kill me?”

“Yes,” Gohan picked up a fruit tart and sniffed. “This is just pathetic. I can smell the poison. This is from the pirate gang led by Commodore Illodor. He’s pretentious and a bit stupid. He’ll probably bring you a real present when he comes.”

“Why would they bother to poison me?”

“This party is a deliberate attempt to bring you to their attention. They notice you and they want to give you the impression.”

“That it's a bad thing?” The false king frowned, “I’m not stupid. I can’t be intimidated by some punks with blasters. It takes a lot more than that to scare me.”

“Good. Any presents you get should automatically be treated as a potential threat. Anyone who even looks at you should be considered a potential threat. These coronation gifts are precursors anyway. The cool stuff comes later.”

“I don’t want any of this,” Ezra said, he looked up at Beru Lars. The woman was watching the food with a critical eye.

“We’ll have to throw it away.”

“That is a lot of food to waste.”

Beru nodded, her eyes tightened with annoyance.

“To be fair,” Gohan tossed aside the fruit tart, “we’re not the ones doing the wasting. I don’t think anyone wants to eat poison. We’ll just toss it into the incinerator.”

“That stinks,” he adjusted his circlet and wandered closer to the table of contaminated food. “Beru, do you know how to cook any of this?”

“No.”

“I don’t either,” he mused, “I want to learn.”

“Why?” Gohan dug a protein bar from her pocket and watched Ezra shrug.

“Because now I’m hungry and we can’t eat any of this. How soon until this stupid party is done.”

“We have a week to go. You have a fitting soon.”

“She’s right,” Beru cleared her throat and pointed at the door. “We should go.”

“Alright,” Ezra kicked at the table and turned to leave. He practiced his stately walk, the one kings and queens were supposed to use. From Beru’s encouraging cough, he must have done alright.

$%$%$%4

“ BYE LUKE!” Meeko Tarkin waved at him from her land speeder. The nanny seated in the front also waved, as well as her siblings. The smallest one only copying the motion out of habit.

Luke waved back and stepped away from the ship as the door seal shut and the landspeeder took off. He turned to the Jaimi, who was watching the scene with bemusement. “What?”

“How did you make friends with Meeko Tarkin?”

“Um, I sit behind her in class,” Luke tightened his grip on his bag. The older boy shrugged. “Why?”

“She’s an odd duck, that’s all,” Jaimi told him as they walked off the landing platform and started on the boardwalk toward the public walkways. “When she first transferred in she was really strange.”

“She seems fine.”

“I won’t spread gossip,” Jaimi said, “but you should probably ask her about her transfer before you hear it from any of the.”

“LUKE!” Both Luke and Jaimi whirled around at the shout. Luke barely suppressed a grin as he recognized the voice and the person it came from.

“Hi, Aeon!” Luke waved as the girl stomped up to him, furious. ‘

“I hate you!” She announced. “Hi, Jaimi.”

“Hey, why do you hate Luke?”

 

“Because he’s a stupid face!” Aeon exclaimed. Luke covered his mouth with a free hand, grinning. “And he went shopping a couple of days ago!”

“So?” Jaimi threw his arm over Luke’s shoulder, “I go shopping sometimes too.”

“Yeah, do you go shopping with your father?” Aeon jabbed a finger at a now red-faced Luke. “And do you bring him down to the lower levels just to go machine part shopping?”

“Uh,” Jaimi glanced down at Luke. “How did he get around without attracting news stations and scaring everyone within earshot?”

“Because!” Aeon almost shrieked. “HE WAS WEARING CLOTHES!” Luke buried his face into Jaimi’s side, giggling.

“I sure hope so,” he patted Luke’s shoulder, “you okay?”

“She didn’t recognize him!” Luke pulled away enough to laugh helplessly. “And then she called him.”

“WE WILL NOT SPEAK OF IT!” Aeon jabbed Luke’s head. “SHUT UP!”

“I’ve got to know, what did you do?”

“He was shopping,” Aeon seethed, “fine, fine. He was shopping and just existing! That’s fine! I saw Luke, and I was like! Luke! He’s a buddy of mine! We are a class! That’s fine! So I got Luke to come over, and his father is standing right there and not looking!” Aeon made a sharp gesture, her voice slanting with outrage. “Not looking like himself.”

“Okay?”

“And I thought, ya know, the way you do.”

“You saw Luke, forgot who is father was and said something really stupid?”

“YES!” Aeon moaned, dramatically setting her hand on her forehead. “It was the worst!”

“She called him,” Luke rasped, still breathless with laughter, “Luke’s Dad!”

“No!” Jaimi began to laugh. “You didn’t!”

“I did! I thought it was funny until reality hit me like a truck!”

“When was that?”

“When I was getting ready for bed,” she dropped, “my parents were worried at first, and then they started laughing at me!”

“To be fair,” Luke continued to grin broadly as the small group made its way to the lower levels. “My father thought it was kinda funny too.”

“I didn’t know that your father had a sense of humor.”

“You’d be surprised,” Luke grumbled. “It’s usually at my expense.”

“Really?” Jaimi and Aeon perked up.

“Yeah,” he didn’t elaborate as they crammed themselves into a public turbolift and sank a few levels in a few seconds. When they spilled out, Aeon waved her goodbye and left Jaimi and Luke alone. “So, which way is your home?” Luke asked, and Jaimi grinned broadly.

“This way! You know, my dad is going to be so excited to meet you! He really is. He thinks I don’t have enough friends. Are you sure your parents are okay with you coming over?”

“My mom is off-world doing stars knows what,” Luke said, “and my father is going to think that I’m a worthless layabout if I keep spending my day in the house and doing nothing else.”

“That works for me!” Jaimi said cheerfully. “Hey, Mr. Tinnep!” He waved at a man washing down a window in front of a store. “Busy day?”

“Not so busy!” Mr. Tinnep gestured them closer. “Who’s this?”

“This is Luke!” Jaimi announced, Luke waved. “He’s my friend.”

“Nice looking you man,” the twi’lek said, nodding at Luke. “Same school too. Well done.  
Well, I’ve got a shop to run, you boys behave!”

“Sure will!” Jaimi waved at a woman leaning half-out a window stories up, smoking. “Hey! Don’t shake your ash onto the street.”

“Go soak your head, Jaimi,” the woman shouted back without heat. “Who’s that?”

“This is Luke!” Luke waved as the woman blew him a kiss and leaned back into her apartment.

Jaimi greeted a dozen more people, in the same manner, introducing Luke each time. By the time the pair actually reached the apartment building, he felt as if he’d met the entire neighborhood.

“How can your dad say you don’t have many friends?” Luke asked. Jaimi unlocked the door and ushered him in.

“People my age. DAD! I’m back!” The apartment was cramped by homey. It smelled like laundry detergent, food, and machine oil. A whirring noise caught Luke’s attention, and he turned to see an automatic wheelchair roll into the room.

“Keep the noise down!” The man grumbled cheerfully, “Jaimi, who’s shiny?” Luke recognized the man’s face in an instant. He was a clone. He hair had grown out, he was older than he should be, but Luke knew. Despite the fact that a wide black tattoo crawled over his face. A large cog that emerged a points from his thick hair. Both Jaimi and his father tense as Luke continued to stare. “So you’ve met some of my brothers?” The quiet challenge was enough to make Luke shake his head suddenly.

“Yes, sir. I,” Luke rocked back on his heels and realized why Jaimi had seemed too familiar. There had been a whole town of clones who had settled on their small planet with their newfound families. 

“You’re a smart one,” the man pointed at Luke, “I can tell.”

“I didn’t think he’d recognize,” Jaimi began, but his father held up a hand.

“No trouble unless he makes some. You going to make trouble?”

“I wasn’t planning on it,” Luke said after a moment. “I didn’t mean to.”

“No trouble, no trouble. I’m this young’uns father, Jesse.”

“Nice to meet you, sir, I’m Luke.” He held out a hand, and a strong grip nearly crushed his knuckles.

“Hmph, Jaimi has been going on and one about you. He doesn’t have enough friends. I had hundreds of brothers, and they were always around.” Jesse rolled his wheelchair into the kitchen nodding for them to follow.

“DAD!” Jaimi whined, he set his backpack on a hook by the door and followed. “You’re not supposed to talk like that!”

“I am your father!” Jesse exclaimed, “I will share your baby pictures if I want!”

“I’m just glad you’re not on the PTA,” Jaimi grumbled. Luke grinned broadly. “He’d show everyone that stupid holo.”

“Of his first laugh!” Jesse exclaimed, “he was a perfect baby! I threw a party the first time he laughed. You two take a seat, and I’ll make you some food.”

“I can help,” Luke offered.

“No, no, just sit down. You’re a guest here.” Luke shrugged and sat at the kitchen work table next to his friend. “Are you getting to go on the trip to the museum?”

“I am, I had to convince my father to let me go though.”

“Why?”

“He didn’t want me going somewhere like that? He thinks it’s state-sponsored propaganda.”

“That’s rich,” Jaimi rolled his eyes, “coming from him.”

“I know! But he didn’t want to have to pay the fee! He was practically outraged when I told him the fee.”

“But you already pay the tuition,” Jaimi watched his father in case the man needed help. “What’s 25 more credits?”

“Apparently too much,” Luke said, “he was so annoyed.”

“Did you tell him that if he chaperones then you can wave the fee?” Jesse shouted from the inside of the fridge.

“I did,” Luke glanced over at Jaimi to watch his reaction. “He’s chaperoning.”

“NO!” Jaimi covered his mouth, almost laughing. “No! He can’t!”

“He is,” Luke nodded solemnly, “he really didn’t want to pay that fee.”

“Wow, just…wow.”

“I usually cash in on that,” Jesse said as he approached that table with a plate of food. He set it down. “But I can’t go to the museum. I’m not,” he sighed, “ready but I want my son to see where I came from.”

“I bet I know more about the whole war than that museum,” Jaimi said.

“My parents were veterans of the war. Um, my mom was involved in more than just the war though. She’s been in a lot of war zones, and stuff. Father doesn’t talk about it much either.”

“Your parents were veterans?” Jesse stared at him, “there weren’t many civilians in the Grand Army of the Republic,” he snorted the last few words. “I never saw a single woman unless they were a…glowstick. Yaluren became part of the ISB. Everyone knows Tarkin.”

“She’s a doctor. She served in a MASH unit.”

“Ah! Doctor, there were plenty of those in the army. They were for regular troops, not for my brothers.” Jesse rolled across the kitchen and came back with a few bottles of soda. “What about your father? You go to Jaimi’s school and pay top tuition, a Moff? I can’t actually see a son of a Moff making friends with Jaimi though.”

“No,” Luke shrugged and didn’t really want to tell him.

“Am I going to hate him?” Jesse asked, and Luke nodded. “You aren’t anything like him?”

“I’m adopted,” Luke said, “I used to live on Lothal, and I went to the stormtrooper academy.”

“No way! No wonder you do that stuff!” Jaimi exclaimed, he opened a soda and passed it to his father. “The same stuff that I do!”

“Stuff?” Jesse asked, looking at Luke.

“You know, threat assessment, clocking the exits, and sniper sweep. All that stuff you taught me. Luke does it too.”

“No wonder you seem so humble and well-behaved. I know some of the rich kids at your school can be real brats.”

“I don’t know. They behave around me, but I think they’re trying to impress me.”

“They totally are,” Jaimi gestured at Luke, “they all want to be buddies with him, but he’s so.”

“Farmboyish.”

“Yeah, that they get that weird glitch. Should I be normal and maybe estrange him or should I suck up to him and try and be friends.”

“I didn’t even notice,” Luke lied. “No one’s been sucking up to me.”

“Have they made fun of your hair?”

“No.”

“Have they made fun of your accent?”

“No.”

“Then they’re sucking up,” Jesse said flatly.

“They won’t do it more overtly until they figure out where you sit in the succession lineup.” Jaimi looked at his father, who shrugged. “You’ll see.”

“I hope not.” Luke hadn't really thought of what would happen if he was going to be the Imperial Prince. Right now, that title belonged to his father and if anything did happen to both the Emperor and his father, then the crown would fall to him.

That was if his father did name him as his heir. Which he hadn’t yet, out of respect for Luke’s potential choice to not be the heir.

It made him feel bad. Well, a little bad. He wasn’t about to be guilted into the Imperial throne. Though, if he were then Gohan would probably asphyxiate with laughter.

“Are you going to be set up?” Jaimi asked.

“I don’t know. I could be if I wanted but you never know what’s going to happen.” He looked over at his host. The man was staring at him. “Um.”

“Aren’t you going to eat?” Luke stared down at the food.

“Yep.”

#$#$3

 

Jifus didn’t have a break for the next few days as nearly every pirate on the ship came down to the brig to get checked out. It was a good thing that she’d brought extra materials.

She was halfway through checking on an ear infection when the ship shuddered. Symboling coming out of hyperspace.

“Where are we?” She asked the pirate. The man shrugged.

“I dunno. We’re supposed to meet up with our buyer, Visago.”

“Visago?” She didn’t recognize the name, which worried her a bit. “He’s not going to do anything stupid, is he?”

“He shouldn’t. Look, doc, I won’t let anyone mess you up.”

“You’re so charming,” she said dryly, pulling away and tossing the tip of her lightpen into the trash bag.

“You shouldn’t have a problem,” the man said again, and he accepted the prescription slip that she handed him. “Thanks.”

“Take it all the way until the bottle is empty,” she ordered, “not just when you start feeling better.”

“Sure thing,” he saluted her and walked out just as the captain walked in.

“What are you doing to my crew?”

“I’m a doctor,” Jifus said tiredly, “I am doctoring.”

“I knew that you docs were stupid,” the captain grinned, “we’ve got another one of your kind in prison.”

“Prison?”

“Prison,” the captain continued, “great place to keep ransom.”

“Oh, hell.” Jifus watched the captain lock the door again, and walk off, laughing. “Damnit.” 

They did put down on a stinking shit-hole of a planet that was somehow worse that Nar Shadda. She’d heard that big-time smugglers were being chased off. Her escorts were polite enough to keep her stuff out of the mud and not break her equipment. They weren’t so nice to her and tossed her face first into a cell that might have been effective 490 years ago.

Jifus cursed and picked herself out of the dirt and brushed down her front.

“Jifus?” The familiar voice had her standing upward and gaping at her father.

“Dad?” Dr. Hermus Piett stated at her, his mouth hanging open. He looked older than she’d ever seen him. A patchy beard had grown in, his clothes were wrinkled and stained, and he looked exhausted.

“Jifus!” They met in the middle, hugging excitedly. “What are you doing here?”

“What are you doing here?” Jifus demanded, “you look like shit! I didn’t even know you were on a mission!”

“I was on a trip to train some nurses,” he laughed, “they dragged me out. What about you?”

“I was cleaning up a natural disaster. I was supposed to be home by now.”

“Will your husband even notice?” Hermus asked, and he hugged her tighter.

“If he doesn’t then my son will.”

“Son! I forgot that you adopted!” He leaned away. “This better not be what motherhood has done to you.”

“I haven’t slept in two weeks,” Jifus said, “his name is Luke. You’re going to love him.”

“I probably will.” Their reunion was shortlived was a pirate stalked into view and held up a holo-recorder.

“Hey!” He banged a hand on the door. “Say high to your viewers.”

“Hi?” Jifus waved at the holo-recorder.

“Dear God,” Hermus rolled his eyes. “I am getting too damn old for this.”

“I think that we’re both too old for this.” Jifus agreed. “I swear I should start getting presents to compensate for the stress of this shit.”

“How many do you think you’d get?”

“Do you count the times I’ve been a POW?”

“Sure.” Hermus watched her tick on her fingers.

“I think about 25. This one makes 26.”

“You can ask your husband then,” Hermus told her, they were ignoring the pirate. “Your mother and I work out a compensation present for every time I get kidnapped.”

“Suddenly I don’t want to think about it,” Jifus said. The pirate laughed and flipped off his holo-camera. “Who are you sending that to?”

“Your mom,” the pirate stuck out his tongue, and he stormed off.

“I sure hope they don’t show that to my husband,” Jifus said after a moment.

“Why not.”

“He’s never actually gotten me a wedding present.” She glanced, her father looked insulted.

“Why the hell not?”

“I have no idea.”

“I understand why your mother and myself have gone without,” Hermus muttered, and he crossed back across the cell to sit down, “but not your own husband. You’ve adopted a child; this should be.”

“There are some complications,” Jifus said after a moment, “and I don’t.”

“Don’t say that you don’t blame him,” Hermus grumbled, “that’s annoying. Jifus, the second you see him again you need to demand why he hasn’t gotten you a present. Hell, I’ll yell at him.”

“That would be hilarious,” Jifus ran a hand down her face. “I actually have no idea how he’s going to react to me being kidnapped. You know Mom is going to comm him as soon as possible.”

#$#$#4

The holo-recording that had been forwarded from his mother-in-law was both surprising in the fact that his mother-in-law had bothered to contact, and the fact that it revealed why Jifus was late in returning.

He had thought she was only sulking on the outer-rim, reluctant to return and face a problem she couldn’t solve.

He played the recording again and paid close attention to her body language. She didn’t seem hurt, except for the resurgence of a limp from a wound that she tried to pretend didn’t hurt her still. None of her gear was with her, except for her outdated helmet. 

For a moment he watched her affect casual boredom. He pursed his lips at the appearance of his father-in-law, who looked worse than Vader had seen him. Granted, he’d only met the man once.

“What do you intend to do about it?” Vader re-directed his gaze to his mother-in-law, who was pacing in and out of the pick-up range.

“I can’t do anything about it,” Gozus snarled. “Mobile Doctors cannot be interfered with or influenced by politics, no matter who is married to who. You can’t do anything because it will seem as if you are trying to influence a mobile doctor.”

“Jifus is my wife.”

“And she is my daughter! Hermus is my husband! When they are out on missions as Mobile Doctors, even kidnapped, they are nothing! Apolitical beings who are only doctors and nothing else. She is not a lady; he is not a consort!” Gozus stomped away and stormed back. “This is a secure prison that they might not be able to escape from.” Vader wondered how many times Jifus had broken out of jail. “And these pirates aren’t the usual sort.”

“The association may pay the ransom.”

“They might, except that they are asking a lot of money. Enough that they are banking on their titles and marriages to get them more money.”

“Then.”

“No,” Gozus cut him off, and he sighed deeply annoyed. “We can either wait for them to break out of prison or we can attack and.”

“I will hire a bounty hunter.” The disgusting expression on her face was something he treasured.

“We do not need bounty hunting scum,” she snapped, “however, if you’re going to let a bounty hunter know that the docs in trouble, get a hold of Boba Fett. He owes them both a few favors.”

“Boba Fett does not give anyone favors.” Vader pointed out. The shark-like grin that she gave him made him wonder exactly what had happened to someone like Fett to owe the Piett doctors favors. “Very well, what other matter can we attend to?”

“Stop disappointing my daughter,” she wagged a finger at him, seemingly calmed now that a plan of action was decided upon. “You have your husbandly duties too.”

“I have not.” He was never more grateful for the fact that the mask hid his face because a raging blush burned his already over-sensitized skin. The fact that his mind turned instantly to the specifics of marital relations, instead of their unspoken and ignored tension; disturbed him. “This is not a discussion I will have with you.”

“Fine, that’s fine. If Boba fails, contact me, and I will cash in some of my own,” her mouth twisted into another sneer, “unsavory favors.” She disconnected the call, and Vader glowered at the screen. A moment later he input the information to contract Boba Fett directly.

The man answered, probably not expecting Vader, because he was still in his underclothes and slowing shaving a beard.

“Doora,” Boba didn’t even look at the screen, “I’m not going to let you have the RPG. If you can figure out a way to jury rig a bomb with some hair clips and spray, you don’t need advanced weaponry.”

“Then it is fortunate,” Vader growled. Fett whirled around, gaping. “That I am not this…Doora.”

“Vader!” Fett seemed utterly slack-jawed at his appearance. “What?”

“I am contacting you,” Vader ignored the state of undress, “this way as I have information that may interest you.”

Fett turned from startled to business, “what?”

“Doctor Hermus Piett and Doctor Jifus Piett are currently being held by pirates who are ransoming them at a rate that the Mobile Doctors Association would find difficult to pay.”

“Do you know where they are?”

“Outer Rim, suspected of the Dun System.” Fett’s expression turned grim. “That is all.”

“Fine,” he knocked the shaving cream off his razor and switched off his comm. Vader would have to assume that that would suffice.

#$#$#$

Luke left Jaimi’s apartment with a few extra snacks for the road and a round of cheerful goodbye stories that had extended his stay an extra hour. It wasn’t late in the evening yet, and no one had tried to contact him.

He wanted to think. 

The facts were these. He was the legally adopted heir of Darth Vader who was the next-in-line of the throne. It effectively set him on a very small list of people who could take control of the Empire. It would only fall on him if he agreed and allowed his father to announce that he was the Heir Apparent.

He wasn’t even sure if he wanted to be a prince or a royal person.

He had been a thief and before that he was empty of any memories. He loved flying, and he loved fixing machines, but they weren’t something he was sure he was going to build of life out of.

“HEY!” He jerked his head at the shout. A portly older man was holding heavy box, sweating profusely and his grip was slipping. “Could you help me?”

“Sure!” Luke bounded over and helped him hoisted the box up. “Where to?”

“Just a few steps backward, young’un,” the man heaved a sigh of relief, “this thing is so heavy.” Luke focused his efforts on not tripping over his own feet as he navigated backward into a little shop. Its lights were dim, and its shelves weren’t stacked, and there were tables and chairs still in protective wrapping.

Together, they heaved the box onto the counter and the man beamed.

“Thanks!”

“Are you moving in?” Luke peered around the dark store. A doorway led out, covered only by a curtain.

“Oh, yes! A bakery and a little shop of nick-nacks! My husband does the baking.” A rodian man popped around the door. “Sugar! Get this lad a snack! He helped me bring that damn register in!”

“There’s no need,” Luke said.

“Nonsense! You helped me! Come get a snack.”

“I just left my friends house,” Luke said, “I’m stuffed.” The man stuck his hands on his hips, frowning.

“Are you insulting me by saying no to a present? Are you declining my husbands baking?”

Luke stared and smiled, “No, sir.”

“That’s better,” the man waved back at the door. “Grab anything that you like!” Luke ducked back into the kitchen, and the rodian gestured at the array of snacks. Luke was plied with so many different flavors and pastries that he felt dizzy.

“Take some for your mother!” The baker said and packed a bag with about fifteen different donuts and shoved them at Luke. Knowing that it bordered on suicidal to reject food from a baker, he took them. “Thanks so much for helping my husband. I was worried about him trying to drag that thing all the way down the levels.”

“It wasn’t any trouble,” Luke assured him and managed to make his escape before he was stuffed like a life-day ham.

He was about to keep up his wandering when his comm chimed, and he answered it. “Niles?”

“Sir,” the butler sounded harried, “your father wishes to know when you intend to return to the residence.”

Luke pulled out his pocket-watch and flicked it open. It was too early for his father to be home.

“Um, I can be a soon as possible if he wants.”

“That would be preferable, young sir.”

“Alright, you don’t have to worry about making dessert. I’ll be bringing some back.”

“As you wish.” Luke disconnected the call and wondered what the hell was so wrong that he father was demanding his presence.

 

#$#$#$#

Boba Fett waited for Doora the bottom of the boarding ramp. His armor was on, and his arms were crossed.

Doora paused at the bottom of the ramp, curious. “What did I do?”

“We have a job.”

“A job?” Doora bounced up the ramp and Fett followed her, shutting the ramp behind him. “What kind of job?”

“We’re going to help some people bust out of a pirate-held prison.”

“PRISON BREAK!” She shouted. “YES! I love me a good prison break.”

“Yeah, sure.” Of course, she did. He would never tell her that she easily outstripped him regarding skill and know-how when he had been that age.

“How much are we getting paid for this?” Doora asked as she followed him to the cockpit and watched him fire up the engines.

“We’re not. I’m returning a favor.”

“Then why am I going?” She demanded. “I don’t owe anybody any favors!”

“You get free experience,” Boba offered.

“Screw experience!” Doora exclaimed, “I want money!”

“They will owe you a favor,” Fett countered. The girl subsided.

“Who are they?”

“Doctors. Father and daughter. He’s married to the High Lord Protector of Axxila.”

“That is one scary lady. Which pirates had the nuts to kidnap her family?”

“Idiot,” Fett said, “which is fine, but they’re dangerous. Dun system pirates.”

“Ouch,” Doora affected a wince, “we’ll be okay though. I bet these doctors are the tough types.”

Boba vividly remembered why he owed the two such a large debt and nodded.

#$#$#

The first thing that Luke noticed the second he stepped back into the residence, was the somber air and that neither Deno or Niles would look him in the eyes.

“What happened?” He set the bag of pastries on the table. Deno shrugged and turned back to whatever he happened to be cooking. “Niles?”

“You should speak to your father,” Niles suggested patiently, but there was something in the way his hands shook that Luke turned around and sprinted through the residence toward his father’s office.

He slapped the door control open and barged in shouting, “what happened?”

“Luke.”

“No! Something happened! I want to know what happened! No one is looking at me. You’re home way too early! Niles called me and asked me to come back! What happened to Mom?”

“Calm down, Luke.” Vader moved around the desk and stood before a furiously trembling Luke. He stared upwards, afraid of what could have happened and what might happen. He hadn’t had a mother for very long, but he’d burn the galaxy down to save her if anything happened. “Returning from her mission as a Mobile Doctor she was kidnapped.”

“Kidnapped!” His heart jumped into his throat. “Do we know if she’s alright? Is there anything that we can do? Are they ransoming her?”

“Yes, she is currently unharmed.”

“CURRENTLY!” Luke yelped. “Why only currently?”

“The tides may change,” Vader said, “I have already dispatched assistance.”

“Who is it? They better be good.”

“It is Boba Fett. I have every confidence that he will retrieve them.”

“Them?”

“Your grandfather was also kidnapped.”

“Oh boy,” Luke pressed a hand to his chest, “oh boy. That’s terrible. Is he alright? He’s got to be like, a hundred years old!”

“Your grandfather is also well.” Vader considered the underhanded suggestion from the Emperor. That Vader should present the galactic ruler as a grandfatherly figure; which Luke would never accept. “He is not 100.”

“How old is he?” Vader didn’t know.

“That is none of your concern.”

“But what about Mom? She could get hurt! She could be lost forever! What are we going to do?”

“One way,” Vader intoned, he led Luke toward the couch. Luke sagged against the armrest looking stunned and confused, “or another, your mother will return.”

“How can you be so sure? She’s,” Luke paused and looked up. “I don’t actually know that much about her. I, um,” he fiddled with his shirt sleeves and glowered at the floor. “I should probably read that book she got me.”

“It may help you understand,” Vader said, “her mannerisms and manners.”

“It might give us something to talk about. You know, I feel like we don’t even talk about anything important. She asks me about school and if I’ve made any friends and then that’s it. Not about her or me or anything else. I just feel like we’re strangers.” He didn’t even seem to notice that Vader had started gently patting his back. “If she gets hurt or killed then I just won’t even know her.”

“Your mother will be fine,” Vader assured him. “She has faced far worse than a few pirates inconveniencing her.”

“Yeah?” Luke’s eyes flicked back to him. “Prove it.”

“As you wish.” Vader stood and crosse back to his desk. From it, he pulled a beaten up holo-recorder and held it out. Curiosity drew Luke closer, and he leaned his elbows on the desk as Vader set it down. “Do you know who General Grievous was?”

“Um.” He did. Gohan used his previous quarters on their base as her fake museum. Or, as he called it, an ode to her ego. “A little.”

“He was a general of the Separatists. He wielded four lightsabers and obeyed the commands of Count Dooku. He was feared the galaxy over for his skill and his violence.”

“Like you?” Comparisons between himself and Grievous was something he never wanted to consider.

“In some respects.” He turned the recorder on, and it flickered to life.

“Wow.”

His mother was younger than he’d ever seen her. Only about 19 or 20. Her hair was already white, and her eyes were dull with the combined haze of tiredness and alcohol. She wore bloodstained scrubs, missing a shirt. Looming over her, and audibly growing in outrage, was the cyborg general. His armor was splattered with blood and considering the bits of white and black armor laying around; Luke figured out who it belonged too pretty quickly. His mind flashed back to the legless Jesse and his son. He swallowed.

“Captain,”Grievous hissed, “you will surrender your patients to me, and you will immediately give me your files.”

“No,” Jifus didn’t look much impressed as Grievous yanked a lightsaber from his waist and brought the brilliant green blade close to her neck. Despite the fact that Luke knew that his mother was alive, he tensed. An ache in the back of his head pounded.

“I will not be kept waiting!”

“Yeah?” Uncaring and annoyed, Jifus pulled something from her pocket. A cigar. She held the unlit end against the saber and puffed until it was lit. Luke gasped. After a few puffs, she blew an arrogant smoke ring at his face. Red rimmed eyes widened. The General hissed in distaste and drew back. “What are you going to do about it?”

“I will take them by force.”

“Good luck with that,” she replied breezily, “these are my patients and my records. They go nowhere.”

“You would report them to your own generals?” The cyborg demanded, and Jifus laughed, sending another cloud of smoke at him.

“I’ve lied to Yoda,” Jifus said. Luke’s head pounded. “You think you’re little stick-waving is going to impress me?” She nodded to the lightsaber. “My patients are not your playthings. You’re not getting anything.”

“I will get everything!” He shouted. His free hand came up as if to hit her. Jifus didn’t flinch, and it stopped just inches from her face. “Give me what I want, doctor.”

“No.” Luke blinked a few times and held his head, focused on the holo.

“You are loyal to your government.”

“No.” The man’s head turned sharply toward her again. “I’m loyal to my patients. Those boys in there are not your toys. They cannot be handed over to you, and you don’t have any jurisdiction over them. I made that very, very clear before I settled the terms of surrender with Wat Tambor. I surrendered under very specific terms. Unless you want a real problem on your hands,” Jifus blew a perfectly circular smoke ring at the cyborg's face. The man proceeded to cough violently.

“I can make your life very difficult,” he threatened a few moments later.

“Yeah,” she agreed, “you could.” She took a casual step forward and pressed the glowing end of her cigar against his chest and ground out the light. “But not without permission.” She winked and strode away. The holo cut off and Luke stared up at his father.

“Mom’s got guts!”

“She does,” Luke blinked as Vader set a hand on his shoulder. “Son, you must have faith in your mother. She has been dealing with these events for many years. She had years of training and experience at her beck and call.”

“Yeah, but.”

“Your mother is not helpless, son.”

“But she’s been captured.”

“Yes, but not all is as it seems. She may be captured, but she is not helpless.”

“So you’re saying that I’m not supposed to worry?”

“That is not what I mean. Worry, but do not fret. Do not make this the most consuming thought of your day.”

“But.”

“You must have faith in your mother,” Vader told him gently. Luke unconsciously leaned against his father’s side and let the man wrap an arm around him. “If not only for respect but for your peace of mind.”

“Aren’t you worried?”

Vader considered the question and his son. For all of the lies he carried and the ones he hid, Luke was still a fairly honest child.

“Yes.”

“Oh, so it’s not just me.”

“It is not.”

“Then what is the guest supposed to do?”

“I will have him contacted,” Vader promised, “I will keep you informed of your mother's case.”

“Alright,” Luke’s head pounded, and he squeezed his eyes shut.

“Luke?”

“I think I’ve got a headache,” he muttered. “Excuse me.” He wandered off, took some mild pain-medication and waited for it to fade.

 

It didn’t fade. At points, it lessened enough that he could almost sleep and focus, but it persisted. It was a good thing it was the weekend. Luke spent an entire night tossing and turning. His head is switching from a dull throb to a sharp agony. Nothing he did made it feel better. Even drinking plenty of water and trying to get some sleep did nothing. On top of his headache, he worried about his mother and trying to get his assignments for the weekend done. He avoided the adults in the home. His father would know he was feeling wrong in an instant, not that the man had been home very long over the weekend. The emperor had called him in for a dozen meetings so far.

Niles and Deno also had lives of their own. They had their own worried and had taken the evenings off.

“Luke?” He peeked out from under his pillow and watched Jinn appear. The older man sat on the end of his bed and looked curiously at him. “Your head hurts.”

“Good job noticing,” Luke muttered. “What do you want?”

“Have you considered visiting your friend?”

“My what?”

“Friend,” Jinn said, “your friend in the hospital.”

“Why would I visit my friend in the hospital? I barely know her.” Luke said quietly, and Jinn shrugged.

“You seem lonely,” Jinn said, “and she needs a friend.”

“She’s.” Luke sat up and glowered at him. “Fine. It’s just a headache.”

An hour later he made it to the ward of Princess Leia and waved at her from the door. 

“Luke!” 

“Hi,” he wondered what he could do. “Mind if I come in? Hi, Artoo.” 

“No! Come in! Come here!” She waved at him, and Luke obeyed. He was startled to see, that while her health was obviously waning, she was beaming with real joy. Her brown eyes sparkled, and she patted the bed next to her. “Want to watch an episode of Flat Foot?” 

“Sure!” He climbed onto the bed and sank gratefully into the comfortable mattress. His headache lessened a bit while he made himself comfortable. “How have you been?” 

“Better, I think. I don’t feel that much better. I never really felt sick either, but I feel better about the whole situation.” 

“That’s good. How are your parents?” Leia lowered the bed a bit until they were staring up at the fake-stars attached to the ceiling. A second later she flicked off the lights, and the galaxy opened up above them. “Wow.” 

“I’ve always loved the stars,” Leia said, and Luke grinned. 

“Me too.” 

“My parents seemed scared, but they’re hopeful. I know that my father is frantic, but.” She folded her hands over her stomach and looked over at Luke. His eyes were sliding shut slowly. “How is your mother?” He sighed and told her. Artoo waited silently at the end of the bed, looking nearly totally powered down. 

Instead of watching their show, Luke and Leia talked for several hours. He told her about school. She told him about the annoyance of online lessons. They discussed the weather, the best sweets to sneak past parents and nannies. They talked about everything until they fell asleep. Luke was pretty sure they hadn’t meant to do that. Only their bodies had different ideas than their brains. 

Dr. Ayden knocked gently on Leia’s door and waited for an answer. When there was none, he slid it open, and his eyebrows nearly climbed off his face. Leia was laying in her bed, her blanket wrapped around herself. Beside her, was a vaguely familiar boy. He was wrapped halfway in a sheet, and his head was resting on Leia’s shoulder. In fact, they were cuddled so closely that he wasn’t sure where one ended, and the other began. It was an adorably domestic scene, and he didn’t need to his force sense to know it was purely platonic. 

He inched over the bed and grinned. Leia was finally sleeping, and from the looks of the bags under the boy's eyes, he was too. 

He cleared his throat, and pale blue eyes fluttered open. Ayden hid his smile as he finally recognized the boy. “Luke, good afternoon.” 

“Hi?” It was clear he didn’t recognize him. 

“I am sorry to wake you up, but do your parents know where you are?” 

“Um,” Luke blinked a bit and he sat up suddenly. Leia woke up with an unhappy whine and glowered at Luke. 

“Stop it.” 

“Sorry, Leia.” He leaned over and kissed her forehead and Ayden gaped. “I didn’t realize that I was asleep.” 

“Duh.”   
“I was asleep,” Luke rubbed his head, “my headache isn’t gone.”

“A headache?” Long experience with his own sons, meant that he could recognize a boy trying to hide being sick from a mile away. “Are you alright?” 

“I’m fine,” Luke said, and he slid off the hospital bed and looked back at Leia. “Sorry, we didn’t get to watch the episode.”

“I enjoyed talking a lot more,” Leia said, she rubbed her eyes clear and yawned widely. “Hello, Dr. Ayden.” 

“Hello, Princess.” 

“This my friend Luke.” 

“Hi,” Luke was picking up his backpack and looked visibly pained by the motion. 

“Have you considered asking for someone to come pick you up?”

“I’m fine.” 

“I’ll call for dinner,” Ayden said. He didn’t want to send the boy out when he looked like his headache would make him fall right over. 

“You can eat with me!” Leia perked up, latching onto Luke’s shoulder. “Please, Papa is still at the senate dome, and he can’t come eat with me. Please!”

“Sure,” Luke capitulated immediately, at the risk of upsetting the princess. “I just need to tell my father I won’t be home for dinner.” 

“And you should probably talk to Dr. Ayden about your headache.” 

“It’s just a headache.” Ayden didn’t look from where he was ordering dinner for the three of them. If his hunch were right, Luke and Leia would probably enjoy the same sorts of food. “It’s fine.” 

“You’ve had it for two days, Luke.”

“I’m fine.” 

“Luke!” 

“Leia!”   
Ayden turned around, and he gestured wildly. “Dinner will be here soon; Luke are you sure you don’t want me to take a look?” 

“I’m fine.” Luke coughed a second later, and he looked chagrined to have to concede. “Fine.” Ayden smiled, which didn’t last long the more he checked the short blond out. Luke sulked the entire time, and Ayden was a bit hesitant to compare him and the princess, except that they had the same exact expression when they were displeased.

“Have you been feeling a little warm recently?” He asked Luke, shrugged.”You’re not sick yet, but you are at the risk of getting sick. You really need to get some sleep.” 

“I just did,” Luke muttered, and he pulled his jacket back on as the food cart rolled in. 

“Real sleep, not a nap. You’ll also want to speak to your father about it. He may be able to help.” 

“I doubt it.” He scowled at Leia’s triumphant laugh. Ayden smiled as they argued and set up the food. He could see how the two had connected so quickly. How they had such a strong bond after a short acquaintance. They argued like siblings, stealing food off each other's plates and   
told the sorts of jokes that siblings told.

It was a sight that made his chest ache. His sons were separated and so busy. It had been so long since they were young and small enough for him to watch over them like this. In no way was it healthy to project like this. Leia was 14; Luke was 13, they were both heirs to vast fortunes and titles. 

For Ayden, he was simply pleased that the two children had friends with similar life experiences. 

For Luke, he waited until the doctor had left the room for a second before he turned to Leia. She raised an eyebrow. 

“What?” 

“Leia, when you were younger did you….did you want to be the next one on the throne.” 

“What?” 

“I just,” he rubbed the back of his head and set his fork down. “I was thinking about it today. My parents aren’t going to do anything unless I agree to be some prince.” 

“The Imperial Prince,” Leia sobered instantly, “I’d actually forgotten that you could be the emperor some day.” 

“I could,” Luke said, “but the father’s made it clear that I have to agree to it. There are other heirs.” 

“Not like you, Luke. They’re evil men and women. They’re terrible people, and they already have power. Can you imagine what would happen if they had more? If they had everything?” 

“I guess that would be bad.” He knew exactly how bad it would be. He knew what people were capable if they had power and money and weren’t going to be stopped or checked. 

“It would be horrible. Me, I always knew that I would be the next Queen Mother. Always,” Leia paused. “My parents adopted me for the purpose.” 

“You were adopted too?” 

“Yes,” Leia shrugged, “we have a lot in common.” 

“But, adopted you for a purpose? Does that,” Luke pursed his lips, “does that ever make you feel like you were picked out for use? Like, they wanted you to do what they wanted?” 

“I,” Leia looked furious for a second. “I never thought about it like that.” 

“I might be dramatic,” Luke said hastily, “it’s just. I’m old enough to start considering other options and careers, and I know that it would be a lot of work and it would be horrible.” 

“You’re questioning if you want to be the prince.” 

“I have a choice, but so far I’ve been avoiding even thinking about it.”

“What does your father say?”

“He hasn’t really discussed it with me.”

“Well, for me it was something I knew that I had to do. I was going to be the Queen. I was going to be the protector and ruler of Alderaan.”

“But didn’t you ever want not to be the Queen. Didn’t you ever dream about something else?” 

“When I was younger,” Leia admitted. “I used to dream about….I used to dream about flying and the stars. I wanted to be a pilot. Then I just,” she shrugged, “I settled into my role as princess.” 

“Huh.” 

“Do you feel like your father adopted you for a purpose?” Leia leaned over the table while Luke shrugged. 

“I don’t think so. I don’t even know why they adopted me. I get the impression it was father’s idea, but I never really asked.”

“Your father’s idea? Really?” 

“Yeah! I met mom first and then father. I was at the Imperial academy, and they showed up to make someone governor. It was interesting, and then I sort of fell in with them. We got along really well, and they got me out of some trouble.” 

“That sounds like you,” 

“I ended up going back with them. I was an odd experience.” 

“I was adopted as a baby. I only ever remember my parents. Well,” Leia gestured him closer. Luke leaned closer. “I remember my birth mother.” 

“How? Isn’t that practically impossible?” Leia shrugged. 

“I remember that she was very beautiful and very sad. My parents told me her name years ago.”

“Wow, so you actually know where you came from!”

“Sort of,” Leia visibly hesitated. “Can I tell you her name?” 

“Sure!” 

“You have to promise not to tell anyone. You can’t tell a soul.” 

“I won’t,” Luke promised, and Leia nodded. 

“My mother was Padme Amidala.” Luke stared blankly at her. 

“Oh, ok.” He sat straight up. “WOW!” That was Ryoo’s aunt! The one she was supposed to look exactly like. The one that she wanted to hate because of the impossible standards her family wanted her to live up to. Luke had heard all about Padme Amidala from Ryoo. He also knew that the whole of her family though the baby had died with her. 

“You can’t tell anyone! Seriously! I’ll be in big trouble if my dad found out that I told anyone!” 

“I won’t,” Luke promised, and he was so glad that Artoo was always searching for bug and listening devices. “I think it’s amazing that you know where you’re from though. I wish I did.” 

“You don’t know?” 

“I don’t remember,” Luke admitted. He absently pressed a hand to his head and sighed as his head ached. “I used to know, maybe. I don’t anymore. Amnesia does that to a person.” 

“Oh,” Leia stared at him, “maybe your headache is your memories trying to come out.” 

“Maybe.” 

“Did you see something that might trigger them? I read that sight or something could trigger lost memories.”

“The last thing I saw before my head started hurting was.” It was the holo of his mother. Except Lue was sure that he hadn’t met Jifus before he lost his memories. The longer he thought about it, the closer he got to pinpointing a specific sound or image. 

The lightsaber is igniting, he realized with a jolt. It had been when the cyborg had held the green lightsaber at his mother’s throat. A green lightsaber. Except that he had sort of dueled with his father a week ago. That lightsaber hadn’t given him a headache. Maybe a green lightsaber was specifically connected to his memories? 

“Well?”

“A holo that my dad showed me. It was of my mom during the war. It was.” 

“You should talk to him about it,” Leia said primly. 

“I can’t talk to him about stuff like this.” 

“Why not? He’s your father, isn’t he?” 

“I mean, technically.” 

“Then he has to act like a father. Doesn’t he do that, at least?” 

“I guess he does.” Vader totally did. He took to parenting so much easier than Jifus. Luke wondered if that was a weird thing for a kid to notice. Vader very established parental boundaries were easy to navigate, but he still wasn’t sure if this was something he wanted to bring up. He still remembered the fact that Vader had held a lightsaber to his throat and no matter what the Sith said, that had felt pretty serious to Luke. “I just don’t know how he’ll react if I ask him about my headache. I have a butler and a cook for that.” 

“Your mother is also a doctor, but she’s off-world. As a kid, your next option is your father.” 

“I guess, he just doesn’t seem the type to sit there and take someone’s temperature.” 

“He really doesn't. I still can’t imagine him being anything other than terrifying.”

“He’s got a dichotomy,” Luke said, “It is very strange even for me. Every time he goes somewhere and comes back I have to readjust.” 

“But he’s not a bad father, is he? “

“No,” Luke said instantly. “I think I’d be able to tell if he was a bad father. He’s actually pretty great.” 

“That’s good,” Leia leaned back in her chair. “That’s good.” 

“I’m glad I came to visit you,” Luke said.

“Me too,” Leia glanced at the door to see if Ayden had returned. He hadn’t. “I’m not allowed to leave. I mean, it’s not safe for me to leave. Since I’m so so=ick and they have no idea how to cure it, I can’t be out there where a billion different microbes might kill me.” Her hand shook as she reached back to brush her hair behind her ears. “I don’t have a compromised immune system yet. My heart is just dying for no reason.”

“We should take you out,” Luke said instantly. “Before it gets worse.”

“What?” 

“One night I’ll come by and break you out! I can show you some of the places around town that you’ve never seen before!” 

“Luke, I’m sick.” 

“So we’ll give you a mask!” Luke grinned. “You can’t spend forever here! It’s a nice hospital, but you need to go outside!”

“I don’t know how your mother will like that. Dr. Ayden really won’t like it either.” 

“We don’t tell them.” 

“That is a great idea!” Leia beamed, “where would we go?”

“We could go to the market not far from here. My classmates have some stalls there.” 

“Really?” 

“Yes!” Luke quieted as Dr. Ayden entered the room. He and Leia exchanged a conspirtal glance. “I’ve got to go, Princess. It was nice to see you again.”

“Thank you for visiting, Luke.” Leia said, “when will you come back and visit?” 

“Soon,” Luke promised, and he nodded to Ayden. “Bye.” 

“Aren’t you going to call someone?” The boy was gone before the doctor could say anything further. He turned to Leia and set his hands on his hips. “He is a strange boy.” 

“I like him.”

“I worry,” Dr. Ayden slanted his eyes at the princess. “Why am I worrying?” 

“I have no idea,” Leia giggled into her drink as the doctor threw his hands up, annoyed. 

#$#$#$#$

Luke had to admit that he was returning to the residence pretty damn late. It was past dinner, and he hadn’t called or left a note. He wasn’t at all surprised to see the turbolift doors open to reveal his father. 

His arms were crossed over his chest, and he looked every inch the disappointed father. 

“Luke.” It wasn’t exactly a growl, but it wasn’t pleasant. Luke grinned awkwardly and stepped reluctantly out of the turbolift. He blinked against the suddenly harsh light of the room. 

“What’s up?” He asked, testing the man’s temper. 

“What time is it?” 

“You don’t have a watch of your own?” 

“Luke.” 

He sighed and fished out his pocket watch. His engraved name gleamed up at him for a second before he clicked it open. “It’s 9:20.” 

“What time is your bedtime?”

“Do we have to do this?” An icy silence followed. “9:30. I’m going to point out that I don’t technically have a curfew.” 

“That can change.” 

“Yeah, well.” Luke bit his lip as he father gestured for him to closer. He inched closer until he was just out of grabbing range, as long as his father didn’t lunge forward. Luke wasn’t sure why he was suddenly nervous. Half-terrified out of his mind as the Sith considered him silently. “I was just visiting a friend.” He was frightened because his father had never actually been angry with him. Or, at least, he hadn’t disobeyed so boldly before. He’d previously broken the rules when he was sure that no one would catch him. 

Luke had no idea how his father was going to react. That was what scared him. Vader’s silence and firm glare were enough to make Luke want to crawl into his shoes and hide. 

“Do not do this again.” 

“Yep.” He ignored the squeak in his voice. 

“Go to bed.” 

“Yessir!” He circled his father, remaining out of reach, and sprinted back to his room. So maybe he should have been a little more careful about returning home earlier. His headache still hadn’t lessened, so he was grateful to fall into his own bed and try and control it. 

It didn’t work. When Luke did fall asleep, he dreamed of a green lightsaber. The man was holding it, swinging it. Luke was holding, using it. 

They were on a small, rainy planet. Their home was a collapsing ship. It barely flew, it wouldn’t survive the flight off-world. Luke’s clothes were increasingly ratty and worn. 

“You’re going to need all of the skill available to defeat the darkness, Luke.” He was staring down at Luke, something sad and pathetic in his eyes. “This weapon is your life.” 

“I want a different life,” Luke heard himself say. 

“This is your destiny.”

He was hungry. He didn’t want this. He wanted to go home. He wanted to go home. His family. 

The barest outline of two people on a sandy horizon appeared and vanished in a flicker. The image was accompanied by the sensation of oppressive but familiar heat. 

“I want to go home.” Luke stepped away from the man, and the entire scene vanished. He was alone, caught between a black hole and cold white dwarf. Both were freezing, a cold that made his bones ache. One radiated malice, the other indifference; they turned attention to Luke and reached. 

A clawed grip latched onto his ankle, and a bony hand grabbed his shoulder. Ice radiated out from the hands, and Luke twisted in their grasp, horrified. 

“LET GO!” He shouted, “LET GO!” It was so cold. It was freezing; his whole body was shaking. He was the last bit of warmth in the whole galaxy. He was hiding it too. He could stand it. “LET! GO!” The same sort of oppressive heat that he’d savored for milliseconds earlier hurdled outward from him. Burning the hands off him and banishing their celestial bodies far away. 

He woke with a start, breathing deeply and shaking. The lingering terror worsened as the night seem to press in from every angle. Luke scrambled out of bed and switched the lights on. The bedroom was empty. His discarded clothes were laying on the chairs and on the floor. He was alone.

As Luke took a step back to his bed his ankle twinged and frowning, he pulled up his pant leg far enough to see a three-fingered clawed print burned into his skin. There were three pricks of blood where the claws had broken skin. Shaking, Luke stretched his shirt out and glanced over his shoulder. This print was definitely human, and it burned too. He recognized, after a few unfortunate missions on cold planets what a freezer burn looked like. 

His scream wouldn’t come, couldn’t come. Luke swallowed hard and retrieved his illicit med-kid from under his bed and bandaged both prints. His hands shook the entire time until he was sure the marks were hidden. 

Unable and unwilling to sleep, Luke wrapped himself in his blankets, activated his datapad and consumed mindless media until it was time to wake up. 

#$#$#$

Emperor Palpatine was only half-way aware of the medical officer bandaging his hand. The burns were severe, and if they weren’t careful, he could lose the use of this hand. He wasn’t even able to see very well anymore. The world around him had been reduced to a daze of white and black shadows. 

“Majesty,” a nervous man entered. He felt it more than saw it. “Lord Vader has arrived.” 

A midnight call might annoy Vader, but he would come when called. He always had. 

“Send him in.” Palpatine waved the medic away and felt as his apprentice sank to his knee and waited for his attention. “There has been a great disturbance in the force.” 

“I felt it, my master.” 

“The children of the Force are growing. They are learning.” Vader, in his field of newly reduced vision, was looming. Not as small as he was trying to make himself. Power seeped from every crack in his form. 

“Project Harvester has not reported missing any children.” 

“No,” Palpatine glared down at the man. He blinked rapidly trying to see Vader as he truly was. His eyes were weakened considerably. Damaged by exposure to such a brilliant light. “they have not. This is a child unfettered by the project. Powerful enough to unseat us.”

“There are no Jedi left to train them.” 

“There is Kenobi.” He nearly cackled at the betrayed flush that echoed in the force. “He may train a new generation of Jedi to destroy us.” 

“Kenobi will die before he trains another Jedi,” Vader promised.

“So you say, Vader. Find the Children of the Force and eliminate them.” 

#$#$#$

The swamp was quiet, even the uneven breaths from it single sentient inhabitant were quiet. Grandmaster Jedi Yoda turned his burnt claw around, catching the light off the nearly burnt flesh. 

A powerful Force user, the same power, and light of Anakin Skywalker. 

Luke Skywalker was coming into his power and his destiny.

He wasn’t sure how he had emerged from his meditation with a burnt hand. In fact, what happened while meditation was considered to be a vision at most times. It wasn’t live and did not impact the physical world. 

The dark one must have also been burnt. Hopefully half-blinded as Yoda had been. He also that his eyes would heal eventually. 

#$#$34

 

Jifus and Hermus paused in the middle of a card game as the building shook around them and explosions were heard in the distance.

“Well,” she turned around and watched the pirates guarding their cell door take off running. “Either is mom or Kit or the pirates really don’t get along.” 

“Probably the first two.” 

“Probably.” 

They both stopped as a tiny figure in armor and wielding a gun three times her size, stormed into the hallway. 

“Hey!” the small figure was a little girl, black hair and skin, and a truly vicious smile.

“Hi,” Jifus said, confused. 

“Hello,” Hermus replied, not nearly so startled. “Are you here for us?” 

“Which one of you is Dr. Piett?” 

“I am,” they said in tandem, and the girl shrugged. With a careless motion, she pointed her weapon down the hallway and began to fire. Screams echoed down to them a moment later. 

“Then I’m here for you.” She slung her weapon around and yanked out a pair of laser cutters. The door was open a second later, and the two doctors were released. “My boss has his ship outside.” 

“We need to get our supplies,” the doctors said, and the little girl shrugged. 

“You’ve got to make your escape!” 

“We need our supplies!” Both Hermus and Jifus worked together as a fantastic team, working until they were in the armory where their pilfered supplies had been left. By the time the two doctors had their things, the entire building was shaking, and the girl was cussing them out heartily. 

They emerged into a burning courtyard, which ended abruptly in a cliff. Slave 1 swooped by overhead, spitting blasterfire at the few ships that had been scrambled to stop it.

“Time to take the long route!” The girl shouted, pointing at the cliff. 

“I’m too old for this!” The doctors exchanged a set of identical wry grins and took off running. They knew that Fett would have his ship exactly where it was needed. He did. Jifus took a running jump, covering the three and a half feet between the cliff and the ship with ease. 

The girl made it too, and her father collapsed landed beautifully, and they slid as one down the ramp as it began to close. The three collapsed with a breathless laugh as the ramp sealed and the sublight engines kicked in. 

“Nice! Two old geezers who know how to handle themselves!” The girl bounded up the ladder toward the cockpit. 

“I remember when my knees could handle that,” Hermus grumbled. His daughter nodded along. 

“Do you think Boba adopted this one or he’s just pretending he isn’t adopting her.” 

“He’s Mandalorian,” Jifus grumbled, “he’s totally adopted her. Let’s go talk to him.” 

They raided his cockpit just as he threw the lever into hyperspace, grinning at him. 

“Boba Fett.” 

“You look better.” 

“Less like a chronically underfed pre-teen.” 

“And more like an overfed adult.” 

“Hello, you two.” Boba Fett didn’t look nearly as enthused by the two of them. “I am not overweight. I have extra medical supplies in the refresher if you need them.” He looked up and down the two doctors. “Which you do.” 

“We always do after a mission,” Jifus said. “I sure as hell don’t want my son to see me like this.” 

“You adopted,” Fett glanced back at her. 

“You did too.” 

“Not really. I’m training her.” 

“Adopted, training. Let’s not argue semantics.” Hermus interjected. “Do you want one of us to take a look at her?” 

“She’s right here!” The girl exclaimed, “and not wanting to be looked at by doctors!” 

“We don’t eat people,” Jifus said, “you’ve got the same attitude that my son had before he learned better.” 

“Son?”

‘Yep!” Jifus produced a photograph and showed it to the small bounty hunter. “His name is Luke!” She noticed how the girl gaped at the picture and then stared up at her. “What?” 

“Luke?” 

“Yep.” 

“Wow.” She stared at the photograph and grinned. “He’s cute.” 

“He is, and he’s also not afraid of doctors. You should learn from him. I don’t bit, promise.” 

“I’m not afraid of you biting me,” the girl shrugged and glanced at Boba Fett. He rolled his eyes at her. “I just don’t want to be in the system.” 

“You won’t be, promise.” 

“Mobile doctors don’t let anyone get to their patient information,” Fett turned around to glare at the offending girl. “They’re the most trustworthy people in the galaxy.” 

“You sound stupid,” she said, and the doctors shrugged. Jifus put her photograph away. Hermus left for the refresher. “But I like it. How long until we get the bozos home?” 

“Too long apparently,” Hermus called, and Boba sighed. 

##$#$#######$

 

What surprised Vader about Jifus’s return, was that he hadn’t sensed her until he’d returned o the residence after another fruitless day at the Senate. 

He hadn’t even noticed her return on world. 

It was three in the morning local time, and Luke was in bed. Not, Vader sensed, asleep. Luke’s fear was almost at a tangible beast. 

As it was, Vader lurked just outside the kitchen area as he heard Jifus and her father chatting as pots and pans were being tossed around. Their voices were indistinct and odd. They were discussing something. He waited for a while and jerked in surprise when his father-in-law popped his head around the corner

“Are you going to lurk out here all night?” 

“I have no desire to disturb your conversation,” Vader said, hiding his nervousness. 

“Kit” Jifus joined her father. “How long have you been hiding out here?” 

“Long enough!” Hermus declared. “Come inside! I can’t believe that you painted the living room pink.”

“He has a sense of humor, Dad,” Jifus’s eyes didn’t leave him. She looked terrible. There was a sunken hollowness to her face. Her eyes were bright with something nearing fever, and her hands were trembling. Despite her leaning on the wall, he could clearly see how her leg was bothering her. “Hello, Husband.” 

“Hello, wife.” He held out a hand, which Jifus took. He stared down at the limb and then at the doctor. There was something resentful and angry. All of it directed at him and then some at her self. She was upset, though she hid it well. After his discussions with Luke, he knew that they had to hash out whatever was upsetting her. “Fett did not announce his arrival.”

“I told him not to,” Jifus said, “I didn’t want it broadcast around. Also, I didn’t want to spring my dad on you until it was too late.” 

“I do not object to his presence.” Jifus shrugged. “I missed yours.” She stared up at him and swallowed hard. He realized he might have been caressing her hand. 

“Did you?”

“Yes.” He looked down, “Luke is not asleep. His nightmares have worsened. I believe he may require medical sleep aides.”

“How bad has it been?” 

“Deno reports that Luke has taken to prowling the residence late in the night.” 

“Oh,” Jifus swallowed. “We should go speak to him.” 

“I did not wish for your return to be stressful,” Vader said, “however, I believed that this is something you would want to know.” 

“It’s fine, Kit,” Jifus reclaimed her hand and together they made it to Luke’s room. Jifus sighed a bit and knocked. 

“Come in,” Vader sensed that Luke’s voice was tired, even more so than yesterday. His son did a doubletake as soon as he saw his mother. “MOM!” He was out of bed and bounding across the room a second later. Jifus met his halfway, seizing him in a hug that sounded like it cracked a few of his ribs. “You’re back! You’re finally back! I thought you’d be gone forever! You look terrible!” 

“You don’t look too good yourself, mister.” Jifus smoothed back his blond fringe and kissed his forehead. “Luke, you’ve got a temperature.” 

“I’m fine,” Luke waved it off. “You were kidnapped! I’ve been so worried! Did they hurt you? Did you get enough to eat? Do you need some food?” 

“Luke, buddy, listen.” Jifus tried to calm the babbling teenager. “Listen to me. I’m fine. No one hurt me. I’m just a bit tired, but I’m fine. You, on the other hand, actually seem sick. What’s wrong?” 

“I’m fine,” Luke looked up at his father, “tell her.”

“He is sick,” Vader said, enjoying the bitter expression on his face. “I can sense this in the force.” 

“The force is a lying liar,” Luke muttered as he leaned back against Jifus for a hug. She complied, and they stayed there for several minutes. “I really missed you.” 

“I missed you too,” she muttered against his hair, “they said that you’ve been having nightmares.”

“I’m fine.” 

“The school sent him back early as he was falling asleep in class.” Luke shot Vader a betrayed glance. “He continues to insist that he is fine.” 

“I’m going to get my bag,” Jifus stood up, “stay here.” She was gone a second later, and Luke glowered. 

“What was that for? I’m fine! It’s just a fever!” 

“You are ill, and you refuse to acknowledge it.” 

“I didn’t want to bother Mom! She looks tired and sick too!” 

“Then you should have no been so derisive of receiving assistance from Dr. Ayden.” 

“It’s her first day back in four weeks! I didn’t want her to be working!” Luke exclaimed. 

“You are her son.” 

The door opened, and Jifus returned, Luke whirled around. “I’m fine, Mom! I promise.” 

“Sit down, Luke,” she said tiredly. 

“Really, I’m okay. I just need some.”

“Luke,” halfway through unpacking her bags, Jifus turned around her expression was uncharacteristically stern. Luke froze, and his mouth clamped shut “Sit down.”

He sat down and suffered the check up in silence. “Now, I want to hear everything that happened and how you’re doing but after you and I get some sleep. Take this medicine and go bed. I promise we’ll talk in the morning.” 

“I have school.” 

“You’re not going to school.” Luke looked resigned and swallowed the pills without water. He glanced at his parents and shrugged before climbing into the bed and let his mother pull the blankets into place. She sat at his side, “I really did miss you,” she told him. 

“Okay.” He sighed as he closed his eyes and his parents left the room. Jifus and Vader waited just outside the door. 

“Is there anything you can do for the nightmares?” 

“While you dealt with him, I ensured that no dreams would disturb him tonight.”

“Oh, good.” Jifus turned to leave, and he caught her hand. 

“Jifus, if it would please you,” he paused in his nervousness, “I would like to give you your wedding present.” 

The change was instantaneous. Her simmering annoyance and frustration vanished under a wave of shock. 

“What?” 

“Your wedding present.” 

“I,” Jifus drew back and swallowed hard. “Are you sure? This isn’t a small thing. It’s pretty important.” 

“I am sure.” Vader took her hand, and they descended the stairs from Luke’s bedroom alcove. “I have considered many and found that none suited you properly.”

“Oh?” She seemed stunned, following him willingly through the residence and then up to his quarters. When they reached his hyperbaric chamber, she seemed to come to her senses. “Are you sure you want to do this?”

Vader considered her, and it dawned on him that Jifus might not actually accept his gift. It was a possibility hadn’t considered.

“Are you?” He gestured at the hellish metal egg where he spent his nights. 

“I. It’s just that its’ three in the morning and I spent two weeks in a prison cell. I am,” she paused and shrugged. “Alright. What is my wedding present?” 

“You will need a breathing mask.” Jifus pulled one of the simple ones from her black bag and hooked it over her mouth and nose as Vader climbed into the hyperbaric chamber. He gestured for Jifus to join him. She did so, carefully situating herself between her husband and the smooth metal walls that closed around them. The closeness of the chamber meant she was almost sitting on his lap as the metal appendages unfolded from the ceiling and began to detach his helmet. 

In the near-perfect silence, her breathing sounded harsh to her own ears. As the metal pieces were pulled away to reveal the very human face of Darth Vader, Jifus felt her throat clog. 

“This is the first time that I have truly seen you.” His voice was weaker than the vocoder made it sound; small and raspy. One hand came up to take hers. He looked down at it and smiled. It looked like the motion pained him. 

“What happened?” Almost on auto-pilot, Jifus reached up to touch his face. His eyes closed and she froze. Just millimeters from his skin. “Kit?”

“It has been,” he looked down at his lap and then back to her. “A very long time since I have been touched.”

She lowered her fingertips until they made contact with flesh. Warm, living flesh, attached to a live person. Her breath stuttered out as Vader leaned into her hand. The desperate, miserable longing made her heart ache. With his free hand, he pressed hers against his cheek even more. Vader sighed. 

A second later, he turned his head and kissed the inside of her wrist. Jifus felt her heart jackrabbit out of her chest and a burning blush rush down her face and neck. 

“I know this marriage is not easy for you, Jifus.” 

“I.” 

“You hide it well,” he continued, “but I see that Ryoo’s presence disturbs you.” 

“We don’t communicate! We don’t even notice the pink rancor in the room.”

“Our marriage is fairly superficial,” Vader agreed. He hadn’t released her hands, and Jifus leaned closer to him. “We have vast differences and experiences. You desire and deserve a husband who can and will be vulnerable and honest.”

“I.”

“I do care for you Jifus.” Her words stuck in her throat. “For you and your opinion of me.”

“We need to learn how to communicate,” Jifus said hastily, “seriously. I know that I was distant and that taking off on a dangerous mission wasn’t the best idea.”

“I knew you would come back.” The soft assurance in his eyes almost made her cry from guilt. 

“I don’t know where to start,” she said after a long moment. “I really don’t. I just, I don’t feel as if I can be honest with you on everything. This is the first time I’ve really seen you! Well, except when we were dancing.” 

“Dancing?” 

“Dancing. When we danced for the first time it felt like every thing we were supposed to say and everything we were going to say was said. It felt like a connection. A real one. Something that,” she sighed, “something that I wanted to continue, but we didn’t do anything. We said nothing about it and then we’ve just been going through this whole marriage being friendly strangers.” 

“I do not want that to continue,” Vader murmmered, “if you wish, we could.”

“Go on a few more dates?” Jifus asked and was taken aback by the long sniff at her forearm. “Kit?” 

“You smell of gunpowder and blasters.”

“Yes, I was kidnapped by pirates.”

“It has been a very long time,” he pulled her closer with such gentleness, that her blush deepened. The man nuzzled her shoulder. “Scents and sights and colors inside here are rare.”

“I must smell pretty rank,” Jifus said. This should have been awkward and uncomfortable. It wasn’t. The chamber was actually beginning to feel hot. 

“No,” his other hand came around to her back and she realized that she was now sitting on him. He pulled her closer and Jifus squeaked in surprise. “Dirt, blood, sweat, and chemicals. I haven’t smelled anything in so long.” Nearly intoxicated by his reintroduction to smells, he just about nuzzled her neck. “You are so warm.” Jifus went stiff as a board as a pair of pale lips pressed to her pulse point. “You are alive.” 

“I am,” she stared at the wall behind him. At some point she’d grabbed onto his shoulder and the armrest. Jifus was unsure how to proceed. How had the conversation turned from dicussing their marriage troubles to apparently the most improbable situation she would have concieved. “I am not the person you want to be kissing.” 

“What?” The haze shattered and he pulled away. Jifus stared into his eyes and shrugged her shoulders. “Why not?” He sounded so offended and confused that she was momentarily stunned. 

“I thought you said you superficially liked me. As we were good friends and you were implying you wanted to be better friends.”

“No. I do like you,” it was impossible to lie with such expressive eyes. “I feel my attachment to you growing every day. When you are absent and when you are here. Your distance and coldness hurts me in ways that I had never considered possible. I desire your attention and affection with such,” he paused, “want, that I had no idea where to begin.” 

“Distant? Cold?” 

“Yes,” Vader nodded, “in my armor and wearing my mask I know that you feel you cannot take my words at face value. Like this,” he gestured to his unmasked face, “you know that I am not lying to you.” 

“Oh,” she felt a tad breathless. She hadn’t considered until this point, that she might have been hurting Vader’s feelings. Her concern and annoyance had been for herself. Never had she thought that Vader’s feelings had been as complex as they really were. Seeing Ryoo must hurt him in ways that she couldn’t even begin to imagine. “I suppose that I have been a bit aloof.”

“As have I. Distance is easier than truth.”

“Yeah,” the doctor pursed her lips, “I know this is odd to say, but Luke has your exact same eyes.” 

“He does?” 

“They are blue,” she traced his eyes and the hairless eyebrows with a thumb. He shivered at her touch. “Your blue and they are the exact shape. It’s uncanny.” 

“Then he is handsome.” To her shock, Vader was smirking. A cocky, tilted smirk that she couldn’t help but laugh at. 

“He is a cute kid,” Jifus agreed. He smiled, and they stared at each other for a long moment. “Now I feel like my wedding gift was not so great compared to this.”

“I had your painting moved to my Senate office,” he said, “it has gathered the admiration of many.”

“Oh.”

“Thrawn believes that the painting reveals your true self. Your honest self.” 

“His schtick of being some hoity-toity art expert is the biggest pile of shit.” 

“He does not see you as you are. It does not occur to him the canvas can lie as easily as you breathe.” His voice dropped lower and lower; copied in the motion of his head, until he kissed her neck again. “A single canvas would never suit a captors needs,” he breathed against her neck, and Jifus squirmed as heat swamped her whole body. 

“It was practically a stock image,” Jifus muttered quickly as his free hand tangled with hers. “I pulled it out of storage. I had no idea what to give you.” 

“Liar,” Vader gave her neck an experimental nibble. The hand on her back had somehow migrated to her shoulder and was inching around to her front. He pulled away for a second. 

“Alright,” Jifus grunted as she yanked off her mask. His bright blue eyes widened as he found himself suddenly kissed. It only took him a moment to adjust; he kissed with such enthusiasm and passion that when they had to separate for air; Jifus was lightheaded.

That also might have been the fault of excess oxygen. 

She held the mask to her face, panting in the proper mix of gases as Vader took her distraction to slip a hand beneath her shirt. It didn’t move from her waist. 

“I thought were discussing having real conversations and dealing with our distance.” 

“We were.”

“Not,” Jifus smacked his exploring hand away. Vader smiled at her. “Doing the most erotic nuzzling and kissing that I’ve ever experienced.” 

“That was the most erotic kiss you’ve ever had?” His expression took on dramatic pity. 

“Yes, because it was accompanied by genuine emotion, real conversation, and your attention was focused only on me. Let me tell you, that sort of kissing can’t be beaten.” 

“Your bar is set so low.” 

“We,” Jifus leaned away, “are not discussing that. I am liking the kissing, but we can’t reverse an entire marriages worth of distance in a few minutes. I need time, and I need some space. Kit, we have to talk more. Move slowly.”

“I agree.” 

“But let’s not lose the kissing.” 

“Good.” 

“I appreciate the wedding present and your opening of communication, but I haven’t slept in my own bed in weeks, and I need a shower.”

“A bath.”

“What?” 

“A bath will help you relax more. You will be able to sleep easier.” 

“I will fall asleep and drown in the water.” 

“I will fish you out,” Vader promised.

“I will go take a bath.” Jifus seemed to be cooling down. “Will you check on Luke before you turn in?” 

“Yes.” 

When the mask was back in place, and the hyperbaric chamber was opened Jifus finally left his room. Her mind whirled with a million new thoughts, and she came across her father in the hallway. 

“Sorry for leaving you like that, dad. Did you find a guest bedroom?” 

“I did,” he looked her up and down. Reflexively, Jifus clamped a hand over her neck and blushed. Given her mused hair and wrinkled clothes… Hermus winked. “Enjoying your evening?” 

“Dad, please shut up.” 

“System of compensation,” Hermus said earnestly, “it works. It really does.” 

“I am going to bed,” Jifus told him striving to ignore him, “you should too.” 

“Good night!” He sang and sashayed down the hall until he was out of sight.


	34. Investigation Underway

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Banaka meets the real guardians of Luke. Vader needs a nap.

“If you’re going to be taking the afternoon off then you could at least act like it!”

“I am acting like it! I have a cup of caf, and I’m sitting down and everything! I’m not even.” 

“If you think I don’t know that your paperwork is on your datapad then you’re sorely mistaken. Put that away. Jifus! That’s not even paperwork!” 

Luke paused at the corner of the library door, listening to the argument. His mother along with an unknown man didn’t seem genuinely angry at each other. The playful edge to their shouting reminded Luke of siblings. 

“DAD! Put that back!” Luke nodded to himself and then froze with the sudden realization that his grandfather was visiting and he was still in his bathrobe. He turned to leave but was interrupted by a man whirling around the corner. There was no mistaking the man. Short, lean, and balding gray hair; dressed in a lab coat the flared dramatically as he turned. Catching sight of Luke, he paused and beamed. 

“Well! My grandson! Hello, young man.” He held out a hand, which Luke took with some trepidation. “I am Hermus Piett, the father of the ridiculous woman you call Mother.” 

“DAD!” Jifus stomped up next to her father, “stop.” She grinned at Luke, “you look much better. Did you sleep?”

“Yes,” Luke tucked his hands into his pockets as the pair of doctors surveyed him. “I heard arguing.” 

“That’s just us; we’re trying to go through her truly pathetically limited supply of medical journals to see what we can find, OH! Don’t hit your father!” 

Jifus shot the man an imperious look, pretending she hadn’t just stomped on his foot. “Luke he’s visiting. We came across each other while we were kidnapped. My brother Firmus is expected in the next few days.” 

“Gods, at least your mother isn’t coming. She’s on one of her searching kicks again. Trying to find the one.” Hermus rolled his eyes. “So you’re Luke.”

“Yes, sir.” 

His eyebrows shot up, “sir? I like this already. None of my children respected me by the time they were your age. I was just another old moron running about and.” 

“That’s not true, Dad, and you know it. We liked you fine. If you’re going to martyr yourself this morning, then do it somewhere else. I’ve got shit to do.” 

“HA! I knew you were working!” Hermus danced on the spot, making Luke blush with second-hand embarrassment. 

“Have you eaten anything?” Jifus asked, graciously ignoring her father. Luke shook his head, and she held out her arm. Luke linked his with hers. “Let’s go see what Deno made up for you.” 

“Did you call the school? Do they know that I’m not going to make it today?” 

“Taken care of,” his mother told him, “course I’ve only been awake for about an hour. It’s almost noon. Considering how horrible you looked last night, I’m surprised you’re up.” 

“I couldn’t stay in bed that long and that late,” Luke admitted, “my internal alarm doesn’t allow for it.” 

“Alright, I know the feeling. After you eat, I want to give you another check-up.” 

“I can do it!” Hermus offered. He winked at Luke, “I have been a doctor longer than she has.” 

“I hope so.” 

His grandfather laughed. “I can’ look at you if you don’t want your mother’s clammy fish hands on your back.” 

“I don’t have clammy fish hands. Deno, my sweetie, what can we feed Luke?”

“Good morning, Luke,” Deno turned from the stove top, “I hear you haven’t been feeling well. Come, sit down. I’ve made up a batch of my mother’s cold medicine. This will put hair on your chest, and you’ll be smoking cigars for lunch after a bowl of this.” 

“Does that qualify as breakfast food?” Hermus asked quietly, and Jifus shrugged. 

“Thanks, Deno,” Luke covered his yawn as he took a seat at the kitchen table. “Sorry about the trouble.” 

“No trouble, none at all. This is, what I’m literally paid very well for.” 

“You should be paid more,” Hermus leaned across the table and winked broadly, “how about moving out of this dump and cooking for me? Whatever you’re paying, I’ll pay double.” 

“No offense, Doctor, but I don’t think you could afford me.” Deno looked down at the bowl he was about to slid to Luke, “I’m being spoiled, honestly. When this job ends, I’ll never be able to work with anyone else.”

“You could always write a book,” Luke interjected, “what it was like to work for my parents. It’ll be a bestseller.” 

“I was thinking about it,” Deno sighed, “but that was part of the contract I signed. No books, no interviews, no nothing.” 

“Keep the family secrets? Like what? The fact that father had the living room painted pink, the hallway painted yellow, and puts that vase from Tarkin in a guest refresher?” Deno laughed alongside Hermus, and Jifus squinted at her son. 

“That’s where that is?”

“Yeah,” Luke prodded the soup with his spoon and shrugged. “Also, every caf shop and stand between here and Corellia knows about your caf addiction. That’s not exactly a secret.”

“Very true,” Deno laughed as he poured both doctors a new cup of caf and then himself one. “But those are amusing secrets. Not the real secrets that us staff are entrusted with. There is a reason that people have droids instead.” 

“Ew,” Jifus and Hermus said at the same time. Luke tiled his head to the side. 

“What’s wrong with droids?” 

“The war,” their synchronization continued. 

“To be specific,” Jifus took a long sip of her coffee, sighing. “We were both captured enough by droids that they make me nervous. Not all of them, but sometimes there’s just a second when I think one of the battle droids is about pop around the corner.” 

“Or when you hear one power-up,” they knocked their glasses together. “Enough sadness, Luke, tell me about yourself. You are officially my first grandchild which means that I have exclusive spoiling rights.” 

“I,” Luke sneezed, “don’t need presents or anything. I’m okay.” 

“I realize that a sick day isn’t the best time to bond with your grandfather, but I’m certain we can work something out,” Hermus visibly brightened when Luke nodded. 

“I brought pastries home yesterday,” Luke said past a mouthful of soup. “I met a baker who just opened up shop. I don’t know.” Deno set the box on the table, and Luke nodded. “Want one?” 

“I don’t know where you find places like this?” Jifus dunked her donut in her caf and took an enormous bite, “but this is amazing.” 

“Thanks, I ran across it on my way back from my friend's house.” 

“Friends house? You made a friend?” 

“Two, um, I think three. There’s Meeko Tarkin, Jaimi Gar, and Aeon. I don’t know her last name, but she works at a sandwich shop in the market a few grids. We actually went shopping while you were gone.” 

“How was that?” 

“A disaster,” Luke wondered if Vader had gotten around to telling his mother about the incident. Or the fights he’d been in. “But I got a meat pie out of it, so it wasn’t so bad. Did you know that father bargains like an old lady? He didn’t buy anything without a good ten minutes of haggling. I don’t get how a guy as rich as him is so dang stingy.” 

“Well, if you consider how much that gown cost us,” Jifus whistled, “I can understand trying to save.” 

“Speaking of that, I want to see it.” Hermus said, “I saw the picture in a holo-zine, and I want to see it in person.” 

“You’ll have to wait until later,” Jifus told him past a mouthful of pastry. “Kit and I decided it would be safest to lock it in the vault.” 

Hermus whistled, “the vault?” 

“This place has been burgled before.” Luke hid his grin with a bite of soup. “And that dress is worth a pretty penny. So yes, a vault is where it goes. It’s kinda odd to see it. It’s a gown and such all next to a pile of weapons.” 

“Story of your mother’s closet,” Hermus hefted his cup in salute. “Later, then. Luke, since your mother and I are going to be working on her supposed day off, would you like to spend your time with us in the library. I promise we’ll only slightly bore you to death.” 

“Sure, I usually tune Mom out anyway. “

“Ouch,” Hermus hissed past this teeth, he grinned at an affronted Jifus. “You deserve this one. I need to tell him all the times you infuriated your mother and me. You and your siblings, between the half dozen of you, there are enough stories for the next eon.” 

“Thanks, Dad. Just what I wanted. To fill Luke’s head with this sort of nonsense.” Luke finished his breakfast. “If we’re not careful he’ll want to go to law school next.” 

“The only thing worse than wanting to be a politician,” Hermus snorted into his caf. Luke couldn’t help but smile. “Since you’re sick, you don’t even need to get changed into your clothes. Pajama day!” 

“Dad,” Jifus set her hand on her father’s shoulder, face serious. Alarmed, the room went quiet. “I’m afraid you need to stop watching the holo-channel family movies.” Luke, Deno, and Hermus burst into laughter. “We don’t do pajama days here.” 

“Why not?” Luke asked and then shrugged. “I bet Papa’s reaction will be hilarious.” 

“That,” Jifus looked at him, glaring. “Is a great idea. Pajama day it is. I’ll go get changed.” 

“Sweet!” Luke regretted his elation instantly as the tickle in the back of his throat became a full-blown cough. By the time he managed to stop coughing, both mother and grandfather were patting his back carefully. Deno set a glass of water in front of him. He gulped it down and cleared his throat. “Sorry about that.” 

“Sorry, Luke. We’ll try not to stress you out today.”

“I’m okay,” he lied. No one seemed to believe him. “If we’re going to be in the library, then I need to get my datapad.” 

#$#$#$

Tove had a sneaking that Dhara was hiding something from her. It could have been the furtive glances she gave the ISB agent turned benevolent mobster walked around the corner. There was also the increased need for privacy, which made a bit of sense considering the situation. Then there were the mysterious hours that Dhara spent in the most secluded section of the garden. 

Tove wouldn’t have minded the secrets, except that Dhara was excluding Mr. Fatty from her activities and Mr. Fatty was getting fur all over Tove’s clothes and stuff when he went to her for attention. Since terrifying common criminals and fashion, industry patron was harder to do when she had bright yellow cat fur on her clothes; Tove would have to pop the bubble secrecy. 

Before Dhara could skulk her way into the garden, Tove grabbed her arms and dragged her to the living room and sat her down. 

“Listen,” Tove began, Dhara looked to the side. Suspicious the whole way around. “This is about your secret.” She sat up suddenly. “Before you freak out, I don’t actaully know what it is.” 

“Oh,” Dhara tugged at her collar. “What about it?” 

“First,” Tove leaned forward, “does this secret put your life in danger?” 

“Um,” the girl hesitated. 

“That concerns me.” 

“It shouldn’t. It’s just me.” 

“Does it put Gentleman in danger?” 

“No,” Dhara sat up, “and he can’t know.”

“Know what?” 

“The secret. You can’t tell him that I have one. Last time I screwed up, he practically blistered my ears, and it was the worst thing ever.” 

“It was a lecture, that’s all.” 

“I know!” Dhara threw her hands up, “it was the worst lecture I’ve ever had! I’ve been in military academies, and they were never that bad. If he thinks I’m hiding something he may give me a hiding! I don’t want that.” 

“As long as it doesn’t put anyone or anything in danger, we don’t care. Second, are you having sex?” 

Dhara blanched, “ew!” 

“Alright, that answers that. If this secret was having sex, then we’d need to have a very long discussion on safe practices and why the hell you shouldn’t be doing it so damn young.” 

“Control!” She blushed furiously, glaring out the bay windows at the lawn beyond. “I know about sex. I’m not doing the sex things. I’m just…I don’t want to talk about it.” 

“That’s fine,” Tove watched Mr. Fatty wander into the room, pretending he didn’t notice the humans. 

“Third thing, take better care of Mr. Fatty.”

“I am!” 

“No, you’re not. That damn animal keeps coming to me for attention, and he’s shedding on all my clothes. His fur really stands out on my clothes, and I need to look intimidating and terrifying. I can’t do that with cat hair on my outfit.”

“Why do you need to look scary again?”

“I am a mobster,” Tove answered. Dhara made a face and gestured for Mr. Fatty to join her on the couch. He did so, wandering over as if it was what he wanted and he hadn’t been summoned. “I have to scare people. That is hard to do covered in cat hair.” 

“Fine,” Dhara let the enormous cat plop onto her lap. “When is Gentleman coming back?” 

“I have no idea. They are a free spirit. Does whatever they want and whenever they want. Besides, fashion and saving the victims of Project Harvester isn’t their only job right now.” 

“I miss them,” Dhara admitted. 

Tove didn’t say anything, but Dhara’s easy personality and the fact that she shared personal information easily always surprised. It was a testament to her parents. Dhara trusted adults; she wasn’t afraid of her feeling or of sharing them. Tove was so used to dealing with teenagers who were bitter, broken, and hurt that someone as well-adjusted as Dhara was a novelty. 

Also, that fact that anyone could miss Darth Vader was always a shock. Then again, Gentleman was different from Vader for a reason. Tove got the feeling the Vader was just as sarcastic as he acted while Gentleman but didn’t get the chance to display it in the Core. Or maybe it was all acting. The dichotomy between Vader’s life and Gentleman’s life would never cease to amaze her. 

It also concerned her. 

“It just feels like they’re never here. I get that they’re busy, but I follow all the blogs dedicated to them and no one’s seen him in ages. They don’t go anywhere or do anything. I mean, they made me all of these great clothes Oh! Did I tell you how jealous my classmates were? They figured out that these are Gentleman originals and they freaked out.” 

“You told me.” 

“And they all want to order stuff.” 

“You told me.”

“Oh,” Dhara went quiet. She hugged the purring cat closer, sighing. “Right.” 

 

“Right,” Tove considered the girl, “there is a fashion show a few weeks from now. Gentleman has a gown they’re going to be displaying. Do you want to come?” 

“Won’t that be a little too obvious? I have to stay undercover, right?” 

“We’ll take precautions.” 

“I’d love to go!” The ex-cadet perked up visibly. “Are you going?” 

“No, that’s too dangerous. But you can’t tell anyone that you’re going. Alright?” 

“I won’t,” Dhara promised instantly, “this is amazing! I haven’t been to a fashion show before!” 

“I have,” Tove groused, “damn waste of time.” Unless you counted blackmailing a rebel spy into working for them. “Anyway, I’ll set everything up and let them know, alright?”

“Yes, awesome!” 

“Since we’re done discussing secrets, you can go. Just remember to take care of Mr. Fatty.” 

“Right,” Dhara shot upright. The cat yowled in annoyance. “Thanks, Control!” 

“Yep,” the woman waved the girl off and buried her head in her hands and tried not the scream. From teenager to gang turf wars, to ISB investigators sniffing around, to Gentleman’s limited fashion showcasing ability; she felt as if she was in a whirlwind of chaos. 

She only hoped Vader was suffering just as much as she was. 

#$#$#$

In accordance with Tove’s requests, Vader was busy with his needs as Gentleman. The weekly conference between admirals, captains, low-ranking Moffs, and directors of every Imperial department was a day-long nightmare. He was continuously bombarded with information and then expected to solve every problem. It felt some days as if he was doing more work than Palpatine; trying to keep the Empire operational. 

This time, instead of stewing in anger and fury and dealing with the unnecessary boot-licking by strangling people; he designed. 

Sitting behind his desk and visibly working on his datapad gave the impression that he was taking notes and listening to the damned reports and gossip. 

He had plans for the Nubian cloth he’d purchased. Namely, a new set of suits for Luke for whenever he had to make a public appearance. Plus, there was a small matter of preparing a gown for his next showing a few weeks from now. 

Then he had to actually see to the appointments his employees at his new shop had taken down. There were plenty of rich women on the Imperial Center who wanted gowns. At least he had adopted the practice of delegation with relish and could thus leave some of his tasks to other people. He was also aware of his officer's impression of him. Working visibly on his datapad meant that they were much happier with a tedious weekly meeting than they would have been. 

#$#

Banaka thought Tattooine was the shittiest planet she had ever seen, visited, or imagined. Sandy, hot, windy, and miserable. Only two minutes out of the ship and she was already thirsty. The Imperial outpost that had replaced the Republic outpost hadn’t responded to her summons or her hailings, so she’d landed a few klicks from the city of Mos Eisley and began the miserably horrible hike across the sandy surface to the city. 

Her neck tingled as she felt something watching her. Or someone. 

She paused, taking a drink of lukewarm water and scanned the horizon. The only thing she could see was her ship behind her, and the outline of the city before her. So far she hadn’t seen any aerial or foot-traffic.

Someone was definitely watching her. To ignore her most base instinct, which had kept her alive for years, would be suicide. 

If someone was watching her, they would be waiting for her to make a mistake. On Tattooine it might be drawing her weapon before any fight was started. 

Swallowing down the sudden trepidation, Banaka kept walking. The sensation of being watched continued until she reached the outskirts of the city and nearly fell over at the first thing she saw. Banaka wasn’t familiar with Tattoine outside of the records the Empire had. Most of the pretty limited, but the prevailing culture of slavery and criminal activity had been clear. 

There was nothing like that here. The moment Banaka stepped onto a street, crowded with pushing bodies, complaining animals, and whirling engines; it fell silent. It was deeply unsettling to be the reason that people stopped everything they were doing to stare at her. She couldn’t help the furious blush that washed over her face, and people of every age and species stared silently at her. 

“Um,” in the near silence, her voice carried. 

“What are you doing here?” Someone demanded. Banaka jerked as a woman stood up in front of her stall and jabbed a hand at the Imperial agent. 

“I’m actually looking for the outpost?” Banaka kept her hands clear of her holster. “And whichever officer is in charge of it.” Where were the criminals? These looked like citizens and average folk. Where were the slaves? What the hell was this place? 

“You won’t find anyone.” A man detached himself from the crowd. Tall, human, and dark-skinned; wearing robes that Banaka compared to Gentleman’s. Except that this man wasn’t wearing a piece of jewelry anywhere and the colors were plain. 

“Erm,” Banaka stayed silent as the man approached. 

“What are you here for Imperial Agent?” He stopped a few feet away. His eyes were kind, but stern. Banaka had the feeling that she’d stumbled on something that she shouldn’t have. 

“I’m looking for the Imperial outpost, and they didn’t answer my hails.” 

“Anyone who manned the outpost is dead now.” The feeling of impending doom deepened. 

“Oh?” Banaka realized too late that she had wandered into a kill-zone and wondered if she’d make it back to her ship. “That’s unfortunate. Did you burn down the outpost?”

“Yes.”

“Ah. I was joking a bit, but I guess you did burn it down. Well, then I’ll be going. Thank you for.” Banaka turned and found herself face to face with five masked and armed people. They held rifle barrels directly at her, and she swallowed hard. 

“Why are you here, agent?” The man’s voice hardened, and Banaka turned around again. He was much closer than before, and she leaned back. She had a feeling if her answer wasn’t what they wanted, then she wouldn't make it off the planet. Someone dump her body in a sand-dune and let the carrion birds eat her. 

“I’m following a lead on a missing person case,” she blurted out. The deep brown eyes could drown out an ocean with their depths. “A boy named Luke. He used to live with his aunt and uncle. Beru and Owen Lars. I have reason to believe that he was kidnapped by a close relative named Ben.” 

“Luke?” Recognition flashed across his face. “Do you know where Luke is?” 

“Uh, do you know Luke?” 

“This is a conversation we need to have inside,” the man gestured at the men behind her. “Follow me.” 

“So you’re not going to kill me?” Honesty was probably the best policy here. 

“Not yet,” he waved at her, “follow me.” 

“Right,” Banaka hitched her bag up and followed the strange man through the still quiet street and into a hovel that looked like it had been carved from the rock formation. She paused just outside the building, almost able to imagine the same shape of the spires on Jedha. Banaka walked in through, and the temperature dropped from unbearable to almost comfortable. She wasn’t sure how that had happened, and she didn’t question it. 

The hovel was bigger on the inside, and a sloping hallway led them further into the rock bed. She noticed two rodians who stood the second they entered the room, staring at her and then at the man. They spoke in a rough language she didn’t understand. A small argument followed and the two eventually left, glowering at her and patting visible weapons. 

“Friendly fellows,” Banaka observed the room. “Real friendly.” 

“Please don’t be annoyed. They asked to kill you.” 

“Considering my uniform, I can’t blame them.” 

“Uniform?” The man pointed to the table, “sit, please.” 

“I used to wear the one for my planets violent crimes unit. You know, kind of inviting and not so intimidating. Way less negative connotations. Lots of regular people don’t like the Empire, and I can’t blame them.” 

“Then why wear the uniform? If you wanted to distance yourself from the Empire, then you could.” 

“I could,” Banaka admitted, “but I have a job to do and orders to follow. Crimes to solve and lost boys to find. That’s why I’m here, sir. I’ve got a kid to find, and I know he’s from this planet. Did you know him?”

“I didn’t know him,” the man said, “I know his aunt and uncle.” 

“I need to speak to them,” Banaka said instantly. “Do you know where I could find them?” 

“Beru Lars isn’t on-world right now, and Owen is busy.” 

“Then why bring me down here. Who are you?” 

“You may call me Kin.” 

“Oh boy, fake names. Listen, I need.” 

“Agent Banaka,” her mouth clamped shut at the stern tone. He frowned heavily at her. “I am known as Kin on many planets. It is not a fake name.”

“Then I need to speak to Owen Lars.”

“I will be contacting Owen Lars,” Kin told her, “please be patient.” 

“Right, right.” Banaka drummed her fingertips against the table, almost shaking with impatience. Her case might have just been cracked wide open, and she wasn’t in the mood to wait. 

“First, I must know what brought you to Tatooine.”

“Why? My case led me here.” 

“How?” Banaka gritted her teeth. 

“Why is this relevant to you? You are not the direct family of this Luke, and you are not a planetary authority. That I know about,” she amended hastily. It wouldn’t do to alienate the man. 

“I am the leader of Tatooine.” 

“Tatooine doesn’t have a leader.” 

“It does,” Kin’s level gaze was more unnerving than she wanted to admit.“I am Luke’s father’s brother.” 

“You’re his uncle? You were never mentioned.” 

“Perhaps not, this Ben character did not know I existed. I was beneath his notice. I am surprised he told you about the Larses.” 

“He was very drunk/hungover.” 

“Then his word cannot be trusted.” 

“Your word cannot be trusted. I don’t know you or your intentions with Luke.” 

“I want to see him safely home with his aunt and uncle.” 

“And?” 

“Nothing else.” 

“You don’t have some sort of plan set out for him? Some scheme you want him involved in?” 

“Luke was ten when he was taken,” Kin said, “it has been four years since he has been taken. If he is still alive, then he would be 14.” 

“Right,” Banaka frowned. “Fine. I was led to Tatooine from the Guardians of the Whills.”

“Who?” He tilted his head to the side, and Banaka realized that man may have been wise and smart, but he wasn’t well-traveled or educated. 

“Guardians of the Whills from Jedha. An Imperial held planet, they’re harvesting kyber crystals from the planet, and they murdered the guardians at the same time as the other force worshippers.” 

“There are not force worshippers on Tatooine,” the man told her flatly.

“The Guardians think that there may have been, eons ago. An old temple somewhere on this world where a …ex-Jedi might hide out. No one Tatooine but criminals.” 

“You know that Ben was a Jedi?” 

“You do?” Banaka watched him closely. Kin shrugged. 

“Yes.” He was hiding something, and Banaka wasn’t sure what.

“You know about the Jedi?” 

“They once roamed the galaxy.” 

“Did you meet this one?” 

“No.” 

“Right.” 

“I do not believe that Ben hid on Tatooine because of an old Jedi temple. He was here for reasons other than a story.” 

“Ben was here specifically for Luke, wasn’t he?” Kin pressed his lips together, and Banaka gave an inward victory cheer. She hoped he didn’t kill her. 

“Luke could be a Jedi, couldn’t he? That’s why Ben wanted him. That’s why Ben took him. To make him a Jedi.” 

“That is one theory,” Kin said slowly. 

“I saw his lightsaber,” Banaka reached into her bag and yanked out her sketch pad and flipped open to the page she wanted. “Do you recognize this man?” 

“That is Ben,” King confirmed. She flipped the page. “I do not recognize the lightsaber design.” 

“What about this braid?” She opened another page. Kin hissed in a deep breath. 

“That belonged to my brother.” 

“Are you sure?” 

He set a reverent hand on the picture, “I saw him wear it once. It was last time I saw him. It hung by his ear. It marked him.” 

“Okay,” Banaka came to the unpleasent conclusion that this Luke was the son of a Jedi. “I thought Jedi didn’t have children?” 

 

“I do not know,” Kin stared at the image. “My encounter with them was in passing. When my brother wore this, he was with a woman.” 

“Do you know who she was?” 

“No,” Kin finally looked away. “An offworlder. Rich.” 

“Do you recall enough detail for me to do a character sketch?” 

“It would be impossible for me to forget her,” Kin answered, “my brother clearly loved her.” For the next hour, Banaka sketched feverishly, occasionally changing the picture until she had a beautiful woman on her paper, staring up at them with a faint smile. Banaka hoped that this suited the woman and that this could be used to find her. “I do not know if she is alive. If this is Lukes mother, it would be best that Luke would have followed her.”

“Luke could have found her mother’s family or gone to live with his mother. But if Ben knew who Luke’s family was, then why wouldn’t he have gone to them. Ben gave no indication that he had done much of an in-depth search for Luke.” 

“Why would Ben look for Luke?” 

“He’s missing.” 

“Yes?” His eyes widened “Luke has gone missing from Ben’s custody?” 

Banaka swallowed, feeling like she was looking down the wrong end of Vader’s lightsaber. “Ben can’t find Luke. He doesn’t know where Luke is. That’s why I’m looking. Well, that’s why I was initially looking. I just thought he was a drunk who made a great omelet. I offered to look for his nephew without realizing that he had actually kidnapped him, wanted to train him as a Jedi, and then lost.” 

“How long has Luke been missing from Ben?” Kin’s fury rivaled that of Lord Vader, but brighter and righteous. Banaka swallowed dryly. 

“Three years.” 

Kin covered his mouth with his hands, turning away and bowing his head. His grief was obvious. Banaka felt acutely uncomfortable. 

“He may already be dead,” the words shook, nearly dripping in tears. The investigator bit her lip. “Luke might already be dead. Three ears in the galaxy, alone and friendless. He is so young, so alone. He has no family.” 

“He isn’t dead,” Banaka ventured, and Kin turned his head only enough that she could see tear tracks down his face. 

“You do not know that.” 

“I don’t,” Banaka admitted, “but I have a very strong feeling. I think that there are really high odds that Luke is alive. I need to speak with his uncle. Please, Kin. I can do my job if you help me.” 

“You are correct,” Kin finally turned around and brushed the tears from his face. “Owen may give you more answers.” 

“Thank you,” Banaka jumped to her feet, buzzing with excitement.

Several hours later she was gazing into a small child's bedroom. There were only a few signs that the child had lived in this room. Owen Lars entered the room and cleared his throat. 

“Luke also spent his time in the garage. He liked to fix up the old droids, and he was working on the T-16 out there.” 

“Luke was ten,” Banaka sat on the bed. It wasn’t dusty, and there was a pair of small dusty shoes beneath it. She picked them up and rubbed some dust off. “Bit small for his age?”

“Always was,” Owen leaned against the door jam. “Do you think you can find him?” 

“It took me months to find you,” Banaka told the farmer. Owen Lars had been deeply mistrustful of her until Kin had explained the situation after ten minutes of hushed conversation. She stared at the small farmhouse until Owen finally agreed to talk to her. “Did Luke have the mechanical know-how to repair a T-16?”

“He was learning,” Owen said, “Beru and I were teaching him. He was a quick learner.” Banaka glanced up at him at the moment silence that followed. “Is a quick learner.” Owen sighed. 

“Four years is a long time to miss someone, but my mom missed my brother even longer.” 

“Your brother, the Jedi?” Owens stern eyes narrowed. 

“Yes.” 

“I don’t hunt Jedi, Mr. Lars. I don’t care about them. My objective is to find Luke, and I will bring him home to you.” 

“You will?”

“Mr. Lars,” Banaka stood, acutely aware of her Imperial uniform and even more aware of what it meant on worlds like this. She squared her shoulders. “I have met this Ben, person. Not only is he kidnapper, he is a drunk and a Jedi. He is a dangerous man to have around a young child. When I find Luke, I will bring him home to you. I swear it on my badge.” She pulled out her badge, the one which she’d used before being drafted into the ISB. “You can keep this as a hostage.” 

Owen Lars took it, nodding. “Alright.”

“Can you please tell me everything about Luke’s father and anything you might know about his mother.” 

 

“I can’t tell you much,” Owen sat down on the bed and fiddled with her badge. He exchanged it for the model ship just at the head of the bed. “Mom was a slave when Dad met her. He bought her and freed her. Before she ever married him, she told him she had a son who was taken by the Jedi.” 

“A slave taken by the Jedi?” 

“He was nine when he was taken. Um, the Jedi won him in a bet.” 

“And they didn’t take your mother?” 

“No, Shmi was left behind.” 

“Did they free her at least?” 

“No,” Owen sighed, “before you ask, she is already dead. You passed her on your way in.” 

“Ah,” uncomfortable, Banaka wrote down her notes and tried to ignore the grieving in front of her. 

“Shmi was tortured to death by Tusken Raiders. My step-brother came back to save her. Didn’t quite make it. She died in his arms. He buried her, after killing the whole tribe.” 

“Wait,” Banaka paused in her writing. “Tusken Raiders, the same people who escorted me here? The same people camped outside your house?” 

“Yeah,” Owen laughed, hollow and unhappy. “Took my dads leg when we tried to rescue Shmi.” 

“They killed her, and you let them stay outside your home?” 

“We’re in the middle of treaty negotiations,” Owen told her. Banaka felt as if someone had slapped her with a fish. She’d never been more confused.

“And your brother…” 

“Killed a whole tribe of them. Um, there weren’t any survivors, but it was done with a lightsaber, so it had to have been him. Anyway, we’ve been taking potshots at each other for years now, but no open conflict. With the Hutt dead, we’ve got the freedom to come up with a deal.”

“Obviously moving forward.”

“That’s the idea. It’s what Shmi would have wanted. Anyway, when my brother got taken.” 

“At some point, he fell in love with this woman.” She held up the picture she’d drawn. Owen nodded. “Do you know her name?” 

“Padme, she said. Her name was Padme.” Owen stood and went to the closet. He produced a small white blanket and handed it to her. “This is what Luke was brought to us in. Ben brought him in that.” 

Banaka stared, “this is Naboo cotton.” 

“I guess,” he shrugged, “Luke’s baby blanket. He was so tiny.” Banaka turned it over in her hands, trying to find a clue. “Cried for weeks after he came to us. Ben told us that his mother was dead, and so was his father.” 

“So trying to find his mother would be a waste?” 

“Pretty much,” Lars sighed. “When he calmed down he was a happy baby. Calm, but he cried when one of us got upset. Guess…lady. Luke has magic stuff that same as his father. I know what happened to the Jedi.” 

“I won’t tell anyone,” Banaka promised, “as long as he doesn’t try to be a Jedi, he shouldn’t be noticed by the Empire this far from the core. If he tries to have tea with Vader, I can’t promise anything. I’m not logging anything about this case for my superiors to find. Anything you tell me will be my secret and will never reach another’s ears.” 

“Good,” Owen seemed to calm. This presented a new problem for Banaka, though. If Luke was a potential Jedi, then Project Harvester may have already snatched him up. In that case, breaking him out might be impossible. 

“Do you have any holos that I can use to compare? I need something for physical comparison.” 

“Sure,” Lars vanished from the room and came back with a holo that flickered dangerously. Se stared at the small figure, blond hair and blue eyes. Banaka cheered herself for doing such an accurate character sketch with information from a drunk Jedi. He looked almost familiar. 

“Where is your wife?” 

“Beru is on a job,” he wouldn’t speak more. 

Banka tried a different avenue. “Did you and Luke get along?” 

“Get along? As much as an uncle and nephew can. He knew we weren’t his biological parents. I think that hurt him a bit. He used to dream about them; he wanted his father more than anything. He wanted to be a pilot more than anything.” 

“Did you tell Luke that his father was a Jedi?” 

“No, it wasn’t safe. We told him that he was a pilot. The night Ben took him, he told him. That his father was a Jedi and it was Luke’s job to take up his lightsaber.” 

“Did Luke want to?” 

“I think he wanted to,” Owen admitted, looking unhappy. “But he was drawn between the ghost of his father’s glory and us. A pair of farmers under the thumb of the Hutts. We told Ben no. We told Luke no. The the next day they’re both missing, along with my landspeeder.” 

“So Luke wanted to be a Jedi like his father, but a year later he is missing again. This time from Ben. He runs away from Ben, but he doesn't know where he went. If Luke ran away, why didn’t he come back here?” 

“He might not have wanted to.” Owen considered the little model starship. “He always had his head in the clouds. Those romantic notions of flying and being a starfighter pilot. When he was eight he tried to go out and shake-down some of the Hutt goons for the water they took from us.” Banaka stared. 

“Sounds like he was a handful.” 

“Luke wasn’t just a good pilot; he was a good son. He helped Beru with the house; he fixed evaporators. He was just a normal little boy, but with a power, I couldn’t understand. He wasn’t perfect, though. He still had his temper tantrums, and his arguments, and when he said something thoughtless. Luke is my son, Agent. That damn Ben took him like he had any right to. He got his father killed in that war. He was partly responsible for killing my mom. I don’t want him near anyone in the family ever again.”

“Huh?” 

“It might be best to turn him over to the Empire,” Owen said seriously. “It’s the only way to make sure he isn’t a danger to my nephew.” Privately, Banaka had reached the same conclusion. “I only pray that Luke is alright.” 

3#$#$3

Luke had fallen asleep sometime around noon, head lolling to the side and propped up a bit by the stuffed nerf he’d dragged down the library with the rest of his bedding. He’d built a handy little nest on one of the couches, secured himself a book, and had settled down to read. A few feet away Jifus and Hermus set up a table to pile on research materials. Holographic displays of charts, numbers, and words floated around it, switching occasionaly for them to write on. Luke was impressed with the accumulated genius in the room. They threw increasingly confusing terms back and forth, arguing over the materials they’d collected and bickering over old family politics that made no sense to him. He was half-way through his book when he dozed, unaware of the cooing that followed when his mother and Grandfather noticed. 

“I’m just worried about him,” she said, looking up from her charts, “he doesn’t sleep well, and he’s got terrible nightmares. Hell, the bags under his eyes are getting worse.” 

“At least he seems to be making friends.”

“That is good. I was worried for a bit. The book says that children who are adopted and move long distances can have trouble with adjusting. Plus, with his amnesia, I think he’s been getting flashbacks that he doesn’t want to talk about.” 

“Amnesia,” Hermus looked over to the sleeping blond and the at Jifus. “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a genuine case of amnesia.” 

“Same here, and I don’t think it’s brain damage. I’ve done scans on his head; he’s never really had damage. His arms and legs and wrists, yes. But not his head. I think…the memories just stopped. There is no medical reason why he can’t remember the first ten years of his life.” 

“That just reeks of dirty business.” Luke coughed a bit, and rolled over onto his side, smashing his face into the back of the couch. “An ex-stormtrooper cadet with no memories. What did his file say.” 

“I’ve read his file, and that piece of crap is so obviously forged it practically stank of fresh ink.”

“Fresh ink on a datapad?” Hermus grinned, and Jifus frowned. 

“Dad.” 

“I get it.” 

“But everything checks out. It’s a really good forgery, but it’s a damn forgery. Whatever Luke does remember, he’s not telling me, and I know that it isn’t all stormtrooper academies. There’s something else.”

“You may not learn about it soon, Jifus. He may not trust you and your husband much now. You may need to be patient.” 

“It’s been months!” Jifus sighed, “and he’s still nervous about some things. I’m worried that he’ll never trust us enough to tell us.” 

“Jifus, you are both taking excellent care of him. He is healthy.”

“Dad, he is literally asleep because he is exhausted.”

“Kids get sick, Jifus. There is nothing you can do to stop it. Sometimes they keep secrets, and sometimes they annoy the crap out of you.” Hermus set a hand on her shoulder, “but you care about Luke and he knows that. When he is ready, he’ll tell you what’s wrong. When he feels like he can properly trust you, he’ll tell you everything. What he needs is space.” 

 

“I can get that,” Jifus muttered unhappily as she drew another x on her paperwork. The section of paperwork vanished. “It was stupid to assume that he would have healed overnight. I know it’s stupid, but I’m just hoping that one day he’ll wake up and suddenly be perfectly okay.” 

“Ah,” Hermus grinned and drew his daughter in for a hug, “the struggle of every parent. You can’t imagine how many times I prayed for such a sure. To hope that suddenly every ill your children suffer can’t happen, won’t happen. It is more than any god could deliver.” 

“You can’t blame yourself for stuff that wasn’t your fault,” Jifus leaned into the hug, sighing. 

“Neither can you, Jifus. Luke is a young man, and whatever he has suffered is in his past. You can help him heal and move him into a future of happiness.” 

“I worry that we’re going to screw him up. Remember, it’s not just me. Kit is his father.” 

“When I see my son-in-law interact with him, I will draw my judgments then.” Hermus pulled back and nodded at the sleeping teenager. “The fact that Luke is comfortable to fall asleep in a room that his not his own, and in front of you, is a great sign.” 

“I guess,” Jifus answered doubtfully. “I’m just not sold on it.”

“You don’t have to be. You’re a healer. Let Luke heal.”

“I’m trying,” she muttered, “but it’s a bit difficult dealing with the work of the Princess, my son, and then my crazy husband who now wants us to connect better.” 

“Oh boy, your husband trying to be emotionally supportive of you and wanting the same.” Hermus rolled his eyes. “How annoying.” 

#$#$#$

Vader returned to his residence late in the evening considering how he had spent the entire day trying to keep the Empire running and hadn’t once spoken with the Emperor. He hadn’t conferred with the Emperor on the work he’d done, and the Emperor had been too pre-occupied with his own thoughts to focus on Vader. 

Or whatever was occupying the man. Palpatine had become so secretive and silent over the last few months. 

He paused just inside the hanger. It wouldn’t do to take his concerns into the residence with him. To be pondering over the while he was occupied with his own family. He turned his head to the side and tried to shake the thoughts of the Emperor out of his head.

The first thing he noticed, was that Deno was delicately carving a stuffed and roasted bird on the counter-top, slicing the cooked meat off and setting aside in an elaborate bowl. 

“Lord Vader,” Deno didn’t look up from what he was doing. 

“Did the lady agree to a formal meal in the dining room?” 

“Erm, no, but with the honorable elder Piett, I thought it might be nice.” 

“Very well,” Vader left the twi’lek alone and came across Niles unenthusiastically polishing the limited silverware. “Niles, where is my wife and son?” 

“The doctors are in the library, working. Luke had since migrated from the library to the living room and is currently engaged in a holo-flick. Ryoo is still on her overnight clinical rotation for the week. She will return in three days.” 

“Very well.” He came across Luke first. The blond was sequestered in a pile of blankets and glowering at the screen. 

“Look at these incompetent idiots, Papa.” Luke made a face as a character; a woman with a lot of bright red hair, a large chest, and tight clothes came onto the screen. She proceeded to beat up five soldiers with highly impossible moves, too quickly and with blows that could not have been effective. “Look at those heels! No one can fight like that in heels! That’s stupid. What is with this? She’s trying to be discreet, but she is beating everyone she sees? She’s supposed to be an expert thief! She is disgracing the title!” Vader could have laughed at Luke. 

The film was insulting his professional pride. 

“What is this film?” 

“A stupid one,” Luke muttered darkly. “About a bunch of thieves who steal something valuable from a dark lords castle.” He cut his glare to Vader. “Original film.” 

Of course, someone had decided to cash in on the robbery that had taken place over a year ago. Of course one of the thieves was a tall, busty woman, who seemed to be more eye-candy than functional character. 

“You seem to dislike it.” 

“Of course I dislike it! Look at this! That lady there is supposed to be a member of the bad guys household. She’s been undercover for a year now, and she’s breaking into his house by beating his guys up instead of using her keycard access! Plus, it’s thinly veiled that she’s some sort of live-in hooker.” Vader felt his humor bubble up. “Then, she’s supposed to be an expert thief, but she can’t even figure out what kind of safe he’s got? What the hell? Then that stupid smug jerk,” Luke jabbed a hand at the screen. A lean Corellian actor in a rugged outfit and a cocky smile ambled on the screen. He eyeballed the other thief with a leering smirk. “Is some creepy, obsessive moron who didn’t want to get a real job, so he became some criminal. He’s playing the girls with some sob story about needing it to pay off gangsters, and you just know he’s going to double-cross her. That or she falls in love with him, and he takes the money like some stupid smug.” The pair on screen kissed. “URGH!” Luke hurled the remote through the flickering image. It turned off, and Vader considered the blond. He was red-faced and furious. He looked sicker than he had in the morning. “That stupid heist plan of theirs wouldn’t work anyway!” 

Vader summoned the remote to him, and Luke finally looked embarrassed.

“Perhaps you should not pay attention to such a film if it upsets you.” 

“It’s stupid.” Luke retreated into his blankets. “The whole thing is stupid. Stealing something that valuable from a man that smart and dangerous is a really dumb idea. You can’t just plan something like that on the fly. It needs planning. Lots of planning, plus, the bad guy wasn’t even that bad of a guy! He was just rich and had a job that no one else wanted.” The stuffed nerf emerged, and Luke pointed it in Vader’s direction. “Since they based him off you they had to make him something a little more tolerable to make it seem they were anti-establishment. So the bad guys is some middle-aged guy with a nice figure, graying hair, and lots of manners.” Vader considered what he might look like if he hadn’t been so badly burned. Curious, he turned the holo back on and saw his character move onto the screen. It was just as Luke described. A handsome older gentleman who wore stylish and elegant clothes. Vader considered that the man might look a bit like Dooku if his hair was a little grayer. 

“I don’t think that he’s the type to have someone around just to have sex with them, but he’s such a one-dimensional character I can’t even be sure of that! I think that if she has to spend time with someone, it should be someone who is actually respectful of her. This is such a stupid movie. Turn it off.” Vader obliged, and Luke leaned against his blankets. “I’m still sick.” 

“So I see,” Vader patted Luke’s knee. “Why are you still awake?” 

“I took a lot of naps today,” Luke yawned. “I should start a movement to demand decent heist films.”

Vader turned his attention to Jifus, several rooms away and apparently happily debating her work. “If you were to commit such a crime,” Vader asked, “how would you do it?” 

Luke snorted, “better than that and my teammates wouldn’t be wearing heels.” 

“How would you plan such a caper?” Luke narrowed his eyes and stared. 

“Stealing is wrong. I wouldn’t plan such a caper, ever. I must maintain and uphold the laws of this glorious Empire.” 

“I have punished people for less,” Vader shook a finger at Luke, “when you are well again then we will revisit the growing issue of your insolence.”

“You can’t get mad at me, Luke said sweetly, blinking with exaggerated slowness. “I’m sick.” He gave a fake cough. “I’m so ill. Woe is me. I am so tired. I don’t know what I’m saying.” Luke lounged, grinning wickedly. Vader shook his finger at the boy, mostly for dramatic effect.

“Insolence!” 

“I’m Generation Zero, Papa. I don’t even know what that means.”

Vader made a strategic retreat to the library and saw both his wife and father-in-law wearing pajamas and debating the merits of human plasma transplants. When Jifus noticed him, she smiled. 

“Kit, how do I look?” She plucked at her over-sized shirt embellished with the words “Galaxy’s Okayest Doctor.” Hermus Piett wore one that announced, “I’m a new Grandpa, and all I got out of it was this t-shirt.”

“I am going to bed,” Vader announced, at his absolute daily limit for such sarcasm and humor. “Ensure Luke is in bed on time.” With that, he turned around made for his meditation chamber. He would have to tell Jifus about Luke’s fights the next day.


	35. Uncle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Firmus wonders how to bond with his new family.

The set up could not have been more perfect, and the longer that Gohan observed the camera placements and the listening devices, and the hidden listening spots, the more she wanted to swoon. 

It was the perfect trap. It was the bait. It was all perfect, and soon her scheme would see fruition. She considered the people on her guest list and cackled gleefully 

“Gohan,” she turned to the Tatooine Gunslinger standing down the hall, “I located King Dylen, he’s in the gardens with the boss.” 

“Gardens? Isn’t it a bit chilly outside?” Gohan followed him down the hall.

“He doesn’t seem to mind,” they paused in front of the door, “through here.” 

“Thanks.” Gohan took one step into the gardens and paused at the sight of Ezra Bridger sitting on a stone bench absolutely surrounded by animals. Perched on top of his everyday crown was a small yellow bird, chipping at much larger hunting falcon that sat on his shoulder. In his arms was a small loth-cat, resting its head on Ezra’s knees was a wolf. “Er?” She blinked a few times, “What is this?” 

“My friends!” 

“Uh?” 

“They sort of hang around the garden,” Ezra said. Gohan exchanged a glance with Beru Lars. The woman shrugged. “What do you need, Gohan?” 

“I mostly need to see how you’re doing? Your big job is in a few days, and I need to know that you’re ready.” 

“I’m ready,” Ezra promised, he stood, and the wolf laid down with an unhappy huff. The little bird flew off and the cat flounced away. Only the falcon remained, clinging to his shoulder with the same devoted intent it gave hunting.

“I’ve been practicing everything, from my walk to my talk and stuff.”

“That’s great,” Gohan gave him a thumbs up, feeling awkward. “I’m going to get everything else ready.” 

E#$#$#$

Firmus Piett glanced around the lines of traffic running in front of the embassies. Hundreds of taxi-speeders and other ships idled out front and he couldn’t spot the one he was supposed to his take to see his sister. 

“Admiral Piett?” He blinked and hoisted his luggage up and stared at the pilot just a few feet away. 

“Yes?” 

“Pilot Fel, sir. I’ve been sent you pick you up.” 

“Ah,” he wondered how his sister had gotten an ace pilot and military rising star to pick up her brother and his luggage. The man was a baron on his home world, with more wealth and power than his sister could ever hope to get. “Thank you.” Firmus said when he’d stood in uncomfortable silence long enough. 

“Would you like some help with your luggage?” 

“If its not too much trouble,” Firmus watched, feeling faintly ridiculous as the man began to pick up some of the bags. “Excuse me, how did you get sent to pick me up? I thought my sister might have come.” 

“No, sir. The last I saw Lady, excuse me, Dr. Piett she was asleep on the couch in her husband’s office. I was sent by Lord Vader.” 

“He has a couch in his office?” 

“I understand it is a new addition.” Soontir Fel was failing to hide a smile as he led Firmus to a ship that looked as if it still had the manufacturers protective wrapping on the side. It was beautiful, sleek, and presumably armed to the teeth. It was not a ship that a simple pilot could afford.

“I see,” Firmus was still confused a few minutes later as the ship took off for the clogged and every flowing traffic lines of Imperial Center. “Is this a Sinlear Drive ship?”

“Yes, sir,” the pilot gripping the steering mechanism, almost wriggling with glee. “It isn’t even out on the market. Very new.” 

“It has that new ship smell,” Firmus agreed, “thank you for retrieving me.” 

“It was no trouble, sir,” considering the pilots attention was on the ship and traffic, Firmus now got a clue how his sister had convinced a planetary baron to run a simple retrieval errand. “It is my pleasure to assist.” 

“Right,” Firmus hid his smile and busied himself with his datapad. He only looked up when a shadow fell over the ship. They were flying in the shadow of an enormous building, Lord Vader’s residence. An enormous section of it was the planets largest private owned conservatory. The idea that his sister lived her, Lady over the staff and residence, actually married to Darth Vader, baffled him. 

He could accept that they’d been married. After all, he’d been a witness. The idea that said marriage carried beyond that one evening was what threw him through a loop. The idea that Jifus and Vader had become an actual couple was ludicrous. 

The hanger bay was exactly what Firmus had expected. Larger than most commercial ship spaces and full of antique ships, military, and civilian ships. With a smile, he recognized the ‘The Donut’. Undoubtedly his sisters ship, and probably the most offense thing to the aesthetic of the room. When Fel had brought the ship down, he climbed down without a word. Curiously the pilot followed, trailing behind as he came to the round little ship. 

“What’s this one?” The pilot asked, and Firmus smoothed out his expression before answering. 

“This was my oldest brother’s ship. He dragged it out of a junkyard, fixed it up and made it his. We call it the Donut.”

“I see,” Fel examined it, somewhat offended by the round, squat, and gunmetal gray lump. There was nothing beautiful about it, except that it was part of the family legacy. 

“It belongs to my sister now,” Firmus turned, “I didn’t expect to see it here. For some reason I thought that the ship would be elsewhere.”

“It has been here a while, sir. I’ve seen it on my other trips here. I don’t think I’ve seen if flying.” 

“Probably not,” Firmus gave the ugly ship a friendly pat before returning to collect his luggage. They both managed to carry his few bags to the living. Firmus paused and gaped at the sight of the soft pink walls and utterly bizarre way that it was decorated. The style didn’t belong to his sister or his brother-in-law. So concerned the décor, he missed the entrance of his father.

“Firmus!” The admiral gasped as his father yanked him into a spine-shattering hug. “Firmus! When did you get here?” 

“A moment ago,” he turned his eyes from the walls to his father, “does Jifus really live here?” 

“Yep!” 

“And not in a tent? With a leaking rain flap and a soggy dirt floor?” 

“Your sister really lives here!” Hermus slapped his back, “Soontir, thanks for picking up my son. You’ll stay for dinner won’t you?” 

“I’m not sure.” Fel turned bright red under the scrutiny. 

“Of course he is!” Jifus’ broad voice boomed through the room and she appeared from another doorway. Her lab coat was wrinkled, her hair messy, and deep purple bruises hung under her eyes; but she was smiling excitedly. “Firmus! Took you long enough to get here. What the hell took so long?” 

“Mother had a party to go to,” he stammered as Jifus nearly picked him up ass she hugged him. He didn’t think he’d ever seen Jifus this relaxed and calm without a drink or two in hand. “I had a few things to set in order before I came.” 

“Excuses, excuses,” Jifus turned to Fel, “stay for dinner, Soontir. If it helps you make up your mind, my husband won’t be back until late.” 

“Well, I don’t want to intrude, ma’am.” 

“You won’t be, besides the more people at the tablet he less likely it is that Luke and I cycle through our four conversations.” 

“Where is Luke?” Hermus wondered, and the younger doctor shrugged.

“Luke is your son?” Firmus asked. His sister laughed. 

“I haven’t gotten around to introducing him to you or mother. You’ll like him though, if you’ve go the patience for sarcastic little teenagers.” 

“I don’t,” Firmus despaired, “surely your husband doesn’t tolerate it?” Soontir covered a smile with a hand, and Hermus shrugged. Jifus laughed at him. 

“He almost encourages it. I think he thinks it’s funny.” This was almost too much for Firmus to comprehend. He stepped way and rubbed his face, wondering when he’d fallen down such a bizarre rabbit hole. 

Jifus slapped his back once and vanished into the recesses of the house while father and son and pilot stood around. “So, Soontir, who is your girlfriend” 

“Wnyssa is well,” Soontir answered, “erm, a bit under the weather right now though.” 

“Unfortunate,” Firmus refused to rub the back of his neck in discomfort. 

#$#$#$#

Luke could have emerged from his hiding spot to put an end to the awkward conversation. His mother had gone off, leaving the three men looking at each other and not knowing what to say. 

He rather like the awkward silence. It had been a long time since he’d caused any sort of mischief. From his hiding place he considered what would happen if he broke into a museum and stole a few things. He didn’t need them, and the museums probably didn’t either. The Galactic museum was displaying jewelry of some long-dead senator. He could go rifle through that, if only to make everyone nervous. 

“LUKE!” The men jerked, Luke nearly started when Ryoo’s loud voice echoed into the room. She stormed in, holding a pamphlet. “WHERE ARE YOU?” 

“Ryoo, you’re back.” Hermus exclaimed, “how did your classes go?” 

“Fine, Grandpa, where’s Luke?” 

“What’s up?” Luke ducked out his hiding spot, smiling that confusion on the men’s faces. 

“We have to go to the museum!” She exclaimed, holding out the pamphlet. “We have to go!”

“I’m already scheduled to go to a museum,” Luke answered, “what’s so special about this one?”

“There’s an exhibit on my aunt!” Ryoo ignored the three older men and stomped up to Luke. He noticed how she moved and her jacket was the same type that his mother liked to wear. He tried not to grin as he saw how she was attempting to copy Jifus. “We have to go!” 

“Ryoo!” Jifus reappeared and caught sight of Luke. “Where have you both been?” 

“Has he been there the whole time?” Soontir whispered to Hermus. The man shrugged, still eyeballing Luke. 

“Luke and I need to go to a museum,” Ryoo announced, “they’re going a display on my aunt and I have to see it.” 

“Your aunt,” Luke noticed, along with his uncle and Grandfather, the wary and almost nervous expression that crossed her face for a long second. “Ryoo, it’s dinnertime. Worry about the museum exhibit later. Luke were you hiding?” 

“No,” he lied. Now he really needed to see the museum exhibit. The mother of Leia Organa had to be investigated now. 

The room fell into silence, Soontir watching with the uncomfortable unhappiness of an outsider, and Firmus staring at Luke with a curious expression, as if he couldn’t quite believe that he really existed. Hermus and Jifus ignored the embarrassment the way they usually did. 

“Luke,” she hooked a thumb at Firmus, “that is your uncle and you know Soontir right?” 

“Hi,” Luke refused to be embarrassed, but sighed in relief as Nile rushed into the room. The man looked ecstatic to finally have set dinner in the dining room. To have broken out the very expensive dinnerware that Luke was sure one or both of his parents had bought in an attempt to make the residence seem more like a home and less like a hotel. It hadn’t worked until Luke had stared bringing down the dishes to eat snacks on, leaving them around the house with messes and stains and hardened sugar. It was the sort of mess that his old compound used to have, and it was the sort of mess that he missed. 

“Dinner is ready,” he announced, ecstatic. 

Luke ducked away from his uncle’s curious gaze and made his way to Ryoo’s side, tugging the pamphlet out of her hands. “Did it say how long the exhibit is going to be open? Do you know when we could fit it into our schedules?” 

“It’s open for the next three months. I guess to give everyone a chance to see it. Do you want to see it?” 

“Definitely,” Luke looked up just in time to see an expression of profound discomfort cross his mother’s face. He wondered at it, but watched his uncle pull her to the side and whisper in her ear. She frowned at him and waved him away. 

#$#$#

“So,” Firmus glanced first at his sister and then at his nephew. The blond boy had his mouthful of vegetables and had been avoiding looking at him the entire night. “Luke.” He looked up, polite curiosity on his face. “What is your favorite class at the moment?” 

Jifus didn’t look up from her steak, “don’t talk with your mouth full, Luke.” 

The boy glared at Jifus before swallowing. “I wasn’t going to. Um, I’m not sure. I guess…” He tapped his fork against his plate and stared at the ceiling. “Err, maybe my. No, not that one. Hmm, give me a minute to think about it. I’ve never really considered it before.” 

“Never?” 

“Nope,” Luke continued to eat, pondering the question and Firmus looked over at the pilot who was enjoying his food and then to his father who in an animated discussion with Ryoo. Jifus, as cheered as she looked, was obviously tired. 

“I think it’s not a class at all,” Luke spoke up, “I think I really love Homeroom.” 

“Homeroom? Why?”

“That’s where my friend is.”

“Friend? Singular?” 

“I have other friends,” Luke blinked, “um, but they’re older than I am. I don’t share homeroom with them. I share it with Meeko.” 

“Meeko, is he a nice young man?” 

“Er, Meeko is a girl, and she’s pretty nice.” 

“Oohhhhhh,” Ryoo called from down the table. “Luke has a little girlfriend!” 

“No, I don’t!” There was a deep blush across his cheeks as he glared at her. “Shut up!” 

“Why are you blushing then?” 

“You’re embarrassing me!” Luke exclaimed. “Stop talking!” 

“Yeah, but.” 

“Luke! Ryoo!” Firmus raised his eyebrows at his sisters commanding tone. 

“She started it!” Luke protested his innocence, and Jifus nodded. 

“I am aware, but this is a dinner table, and we do not shout at the dinner table.” Firmus muffled is smile in his cup. He remembered more than one shouted conversation at the family dinner table. Courtesy of his sister. Hermus obviously remembered the same thing; his coughing fit couldn’t have been coincidental. Firmus looked back just in time to see his sister shoot the medical student a warning frown, before going back to her food. 

Dinner ended a while later, a little uncomfortable, but otherwise well enough that Firmus was almost confident to claim that it wasn’t a disaster. Fel left soon after. Hermus and Ryoo retreated to the library to brainstorm, and Luke disappeared so quickly that Firmus was convinced that it was magic.

Despite the glower from the butler, he and Jifus stayed to help clear the table. 

“Your son seems skittish. Is that normal?” 

“Nervous is normal, but not in front of new people,” Jifus glanced around the kitchen. “Usually he’s fine with meeting new people. Maybe it’s because you’re his uncle?”

“Seems a little shy,” Firmus muttered, “how do you like parenting?” 

“It’s almost like extended babysitting,” she winked at him. Firmus glowered. “But really, I like it. I never thought I’d be a mother, but it seems to work out fine. He goes to bed on time, eats his veggies, doesn’t cuss or do anything crazy. He’s settling in as much as I am, I guess. He was stormtrooper cadet when we adopted him. Civilian life is a little difficult. I think it might have been your uniform.” 

“What’s wrong with my uniform? I’m an admiral.” 

“You are,” Jifus handed him a stack of dirty plates. “But Luke is a kid with a few bad experiences with men in uniforms. You should try to dress like a civilian when you’re here. At least inside.” 

“It’ll consider it.” Firmus offered a polite nod to the twi’lek working on filling a dishwasher. “How does he handle you.” He paused “Your husband?” 

Jifus shrugged, and she led him to the conservatory that he had seen on his way in. “I think they get along much better. I was gone for a few weeks on a mission. That’s when I met up with Dad in that pirate dungeon. Anyway, Kit was in charge of.” Firmus coughed politely. “What?” 

“You call your husband kit?”

“Yes,” she paused beneath a small tree.

“Does he know what it means?” 

“Ehhhh, not sure. He knows how to write in Axillian, an old skill, but I’m not sure he’s clear on the other details.”

“I pray that you’re not within grabbing distance when he figures out what it means.” 

“I’ll be fine,” she grinned. “He likes it.”

“That’s because he’s ignorant.” 

“For now, don’t tell me that you came all this way to gossip about my husband. He’s just a man…with a lightsaber…and Sith powers….and a temper. Oh, you’re checking up on me for Mother.” 

“Don’t play stupid, Jifus. You knew that I was here exactly for that reason the instant you learned I was coming to visit.” Firmus glowered. “I don’t care if other people don’t acknowledge your intelligence, but please don’t pretend that I’m ignorant of it.” 

“It’s easier to navigate this planet when people think the only thing on my mind is science.” Jifus shrugged, stuffing her hands into her pockets as she sat on one of the low stone walls holding back a small vegetable garden. “So Mother is worried?” 

“I am too, JIfus. Vader is a dangerous man.” Firmus took a seat beside her. “He’s got a certain reputation for a reason. I love you too much to be stuck in a situation that makes you unhappy.” 

“I’m unhappy, but not because of my husband. I’ve got a case I can’t crack and if I don’t then a 14 year-old-girl dies. It’s that and adjustment issues.”

“But.” 

“He’s actually a very good husband…considering.” 

“Mediocre husbandry is not a reassuring idea.” 

“Considering I went into this marriage with mediocre expectations, it hasn't been. I appreciate how you’re worrying though.” 

“Well,” Firmus sighed. “Lord Vader has always done everything above and beyond expectations. Twice as better than anyone else could manage, and with more passion.” 

“Trust me, Firmus. I have it on good authority that I am the envy of every woman in Court.” 

“Really?” He didn’t quite believe it, but his sister was too honest to lie. At least, she wasn’t going to lie to him about this. She was an accomplished liar. 

“He pulled my chair out for me at the ball. We discussed science the entire time. He is a divine dancer. No, don’t give me that look. He is a fantastic dancer, which is probably for the best. I don’t think I could stay married to a man who couldn’t dance well.” 

“Jifus, that is all material and public.” 

“Firmus, we got married for convenience and political reasons. Not because I’d fallen in love with him.” 

“I am a little disappointed you aren’t in love with him. I’d be more uncomfortable though if you were. Having him as my brother-in-law is a bit of a trip at the moment.” 

“A bit of a trip? Firmus, you just have to get past the Darth Vader and see the…..not so Darth Vader.” 

“That doesn’t make any sense,” Firmus pointed out, “Mother was convinced that he handed you a child to take care of just to keep you busy.” 

“Luke was an agreed upon thing. If anything happens, you two will be the first to know so you can come in and kill him. Well, kick around the remains of what’s left of him. Now, are you done?”

“Yes,” Firmus sighed, sitting down as his sister stared up at the leave above them. “You have a lovely home.” 

“That’s all his fault. He had all of the painting done over when I complained of the gray paint.” 

“Ah.” 

“He’s sassy.” He tried not to choke on the idea that Vader could be sassy with anyone. “And with a sense of humor that I’ve come to appreciate. Though, there was a night where he got mad at me.” Firmus swallowed. “The bastard locked me out of my own bedroom. I couldn’t get in, and I spent the night literally sleeping on the couch. I realize that we don’t share a bed, but it was kinda ridiculous.” 

“Dare I ask?” 

“Ah,” she rolled her eyes, “I accidentally insulted someone he liked.” 

“That would do it,” Firmus watched his sister carefully. “You seem happy.”

“I think I am.” Jifus sighed, turning to him with a smile. “Don’t worry about Luke. He’s still a little new to civilian life.” 

“I wasn’t worried. I did bring presents.” 

“You brought my son presents?” 

“I thought me might like some. Also, Mother sent some as well. She was disappointed she couldn’t come. She’s going to a coronation.” 

“I’m pretty sure it’s been a long time since she’s been to one of those.” 

“A long time, but you know Mother. If it means allies or intelligence then she’s going.” 

“Obviously.” 

“Jifus,” Firmus worried his cap between his hands. “Do you think that Luke might be…?” His sister made a face. 

“I don’t know, but I hope not. He’s too young for that nonsense. I already have a bone to pick with that old wrinkled.” She made a violent gesture. Firmus shook his head. 

“Mother’s been having trouble with Tarkin again. He’s been trying to assert his authority over the fleet.” 

“Ugg, Tarkin. You know that Meeko girl that Luke was talking about is his oldest grandkid?” 

“Ah, I can see how that might cause some difficulty. Well, she’s ordered the construction of three new ships. You won’t believe the success we’ve had recently when it comes to taking down pirates and slavers.” 

“Really?” 

“Oh yes, actually a bit odd. Well, to help with all of this, Mother ordered three new ships.” 

“The Home Fleet is the largest independent armed force outside of the Imperial Armed Forces.” 

“For the moment and as long as you discount Hapes and Corellia. Still, we have a sizeable military force, but comparatively, it is not enough. We can’t be the only policemen of the galaxy, and we’re taking down more pirates in the last year than we have these last ten.” 

“That is a lot,” Jifus noted, “and I mean a lot.” 

“Which concerns Mother. She thinks there might be a conspiracy happening and this coronation might be an outreach or an assassination attempt.” 

“So, these criminals?” 

“Oh, we’re also not the only ones taking out these criminals.” Firmus tapped his knee. “We’ve come across the aftermath of several battles. Not Imperial and not the Home Fleet.” 

“What do you think it is?” 

“Personally, not that I’m saying it out loud, it sounds like another gang is trying to seize power. Someone certainly is. Whatever it is, I am sure that Mother will figure it out.” 

“Conspiracies are her life,” Jifus agreed.

“Aside from the that, I can’t believe that you live here.” 

“You looked more shell-shocked at my wedding than I did,” Jifus laughed. “Come on, tell me how it’s going on at home?” 

#$#$#4

Darth Vader returned to his residence late enough in the evening that Luke had already gone to bed. Ryoo was still awake, but not stirring from her room, so he let it slide. Jifus and Hermus were in another room discussing something probably medical related. Firmus, his former potential captain, was sitting in the living room reading a datapad. 

He looked up the moment Vader entered, apprehension and surprise across his face. Vader, not exactly sure how he ought to address the mousy man, offered him a nod. “You are late.” 

“Apologies,” Firmus grimaced, “I had much to arrange before I could leave.” Their awkward staring did not abate. “You have a lovely home.” 

If he hadn’t been intensely frustrated by the entire day behind him, Vader might have smiled. “Thank you.” Firmus blinked and was torn between military bearing or acknowledging their new bonds of relationship. To avoid any further discomfort, Vader turned away to leave. 

“If you're looking,” Firmus blurted out, “for a cheat-sheet of things my sister likes.” He produced a folded flimsi. “My mother and I put together a list. Some of them are a little expensive.” Vader took it, examine the writing on the page. 

“Payment is no object.” 

“I didn’t think it would be,” Firmus rubbed his palms against his waist, still struggling for a conversation. “But this might be easier to work with than my sister.” 

“She is rather uncommunicative.” 

“Very, but I thought you might like the assistance.” 

“You have my appreciation,” the Sith rumbled. “Good night, Firmus.”

“Good night,” the man stuttered out, surprised and waited until Vader had proceeded to his hyperbaric chamber before falling over and trying to slow down his heart. 

#$#$3

“I’ll have you know that having this many Piett’s in one house is going to end in a disaster.” Jifus gently tapped his husband's nose. His scarred lips twisted upwards in a smile. He took her hand and kissed her fingertips. 

“How so?” He muttered against her hand. 

“Firmus is nervous. He’s always been a little nervous, but my Father is going to explode from sheer excitement. Luke,” Jifus hummed as Kit laced his fingers with hers. “Is being oddly anti-social.”

“Your brother wears an officers uniform. I am sure that that makes him nervous.” 

“That’s what I said. Firmus agreed to try and wear civilian clothes around him. Luke hardly spoke a few words to each other. Erm, what’s worse is that there is a museum exhibit that Ryoo wants to go see.” 

“I have no objection to Ryoo visiting a museum.” 

“It’s about….Padme Amidala and her clothes.” 

Oddly enough, the first thought that seemed to cross his mind wasn’t related to his lost wife.

“Why would they make an exhibit about her clothes?” There was pain his bright blue eyes, enough that Jifus looked away. As much as she tried, her jealousy clawed up her spine and gnawed on the edge of her heart.

“I don’t know,” she stared at the white dome around them. She only looked down when Kit patted her hand. “Ryoo wants to go and so does Luke.” 

“Do you object?” The sincere concern in his voice was enough to make her sigh. 

“Not any real objections,” she admitted. “Kit, what do?” 

“I said my goodbye long ago,” he said softly. “I still mourn her, but I have accepted her death. I.” He heaved a sigh and leaned back against his seat. “I cannot articulate my feelings on the matter. They are too.” 

“Confusing?” 

“Delicate,” Vader interjected, “but barring them from attending would be as simple as ordering them to stay away.” 

“And make them even more curious? Set myself up as the bad guy? Turn me into the villain? No, I can stand that fallout. I am wondering how you’re going to manage to chaperone Luke’s visit to the Clone Wars museum though.” 

“I hope that there is a reasonable excuse for me to ground him before then,” he grumbled. “I anticipate only chaos from this visit.” 

“Given that you, a veteran, and Luke a freakishly well-informed kid are going to a museum that will most likely be filled with false information. I can guarantee it.” 

“I will not fall for such an obvious trap.” He gallantly kissed her cheek. Jifus seemed somewhat appeased. “However, if Luke causes any significant chaos.” 

“I’m not thinking Luke will be the one losing his temper.” He made an unhappy face as she grinned broadly. Humored at his expense.


End file.
